Dame: Portland return 'will be emotional because I care'

Damian Lillard expects to endure poignant moments Wednesday when he returns to Portland for the first time as a member of the Milwaukee Bucks.

"I think it will be emotional because I care," Lillard told The Oregonian's Aaron Fentress. "I loved playing in Portland. I loved living there and still live there."

He added: "Everything I ever said about my time in Portland playing there, I meant that shit. So, yeah, it will be (emotional)."

Lillard spent 11 seasons with the Trail Blazers after being selected sixth overall in 2012. He was named the 2012-13 Rookie of the Year, he was an All-NBA selection seven times, and he still holds several franchise records, including total points scored (19,376) and made 3-pointers (2,387). Lillard is also responsible for the six best single-game scoring performances in Blazers history, headlined by a 71-point outburst against the Houston Rockets last February.

However, he requested a trade this past offseason with Portland seemingly headed toward a rebuild. Though he initially hoped to join the Miami Heat, the Bucks eventually swung a three-team, eight-player trade for the 33-year-old.

Lillard won't rule out a potential return to Portland before the 33-year-old's career is over, however.

"I see there being a time where I play for the Trail Blazers," he told Fentress. "But it won't be right now. I play for the Bucks. To accomplish what we want to accomplish, you've got to be all-in on that. And I was traded, and I'm all-in to try to accomplish that here."