Bucks’ Damian Lillard makes game-winning layup in return for concussion

MILWAUKEE — Damian Lillard has dealt with all kinds of injuries throughout his 13 seasons in the NBA, but he’s never had to worry about recovering from a concussion before.

His return from concussion protocol put the Milwaukee Bucks guard in a much more familiar situation.

Lillard returned after missing three games and made a game-winning layup with 3.9 seconds left in the Bucks’ 101-100 win over Houston that snapped the Rockets’ five-game winning streak on Monday.

“It was actually the first time in my life that I just got a concussion,” Lillard said after the game. “I’ve played football. I box all the time. I’ve been in some situations where you’d expect me to have had a concussion before, but the first time.

“Usually when something is wrong with me, I feel like I can get through it and I feel good. This was probably one of the first times in my life and certainly in my NBA career, where I thought: “Something is off.” It was kind of frustrating because I had no choice but to go through the process, I just had to acknowledge how I felt and I knew I didn’t feel quite right.

Lillard had an up-and-down performance in his return. He compiled 18 points and 10 assists, but missed all six of his 3-point attempts and couldn’t convert some contested layups he usually hits.

But when the game was on the line, Lillard delivered as he has throughout his career.

“I think he’s one of the best to ever do that — like finish the game,” Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo said.

Lillard’s finishing ability led Bucks coach Doc Rivers to draw comparisons to one of the game’s all-time great shooters.

“Ladies just have great courage, you know?” Rivers said. “Reminds me a lot of Ray Allen that way. Ray didn’t have many bad shooting nights, but when he had one, if you had a shot to make, you’d still go to him. And that’s how you feel about Dame Like, whether he’s on fire or not, he just has this thing in him to take the last shot and do it over and over again.

The Bucks trailed 100-99 when Lillard had the ball in his hands in the closing seconds. He drove into the lane, split two defenders and made the driving layup that put Milwaukee ahead for good.

“I could tell it was one of those games where I had to keep going, keep the gas down the stretch,” Lillard said. “It just came down to the last two plays. I got one going and we were able to get a stop on the other end.”

It was the type of moment Lillard was eager to deliver during his difficult week as he worked to get back on the floor.

“I was really trying to rush through the protocols so I could get back,” Lillard said. “I think it ended up working against me. I did a 30-minute bike ride, 30-minute treadmill, 30 minutes on the track all in one day just to try and see how I felt. I saw , that I wasn’t right And from there I trained 45 minutes on the field, and just tried to do that fast, fewer breaks, something like that just to push myself to try to compensate for not being on the field. “