Damian Lillard Reflects on Portland Fans' 'Love' and Tribute as Bucks Lose to Blazers

Milwaukee Bucks superstar guard Damian Lillard expressed his appreciation for the Portland Trail Blazers' fans after he received a warm reception in his former stomping grounds Wednesday.

According to Jason Quick of The Athletic, Lillard suggested that he took great joy in how Blazers fans welcomed him back to the city:

"I just felt appreciated. I think that's what it comes down to: you feel the appreciation and the love. I just kind of stood in it, like man, this is a big deal. Just to take that moment and to have everybody in the building show me that type of love … it's an acknowledgment of a lot of things during my time here, so I appreciated it."

As seen in the following video, Blazers fans at Moda Center in Portland gave Lillard a rousing ovation for about one minute straight during Wednesday's pregame introduction:

Lillard, who was playing his first game in Portland since getting traded to Milwaukee during the offseason, spent the first 11 seasons of his career with the Blazers.

During that time, Lillard established himself as one of the best players in the league, earning seven All-Star nods, seven All-NBA selections and the 2012-13 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.

Although the Blazers made it to the playoffs eight times during Dame's tenure, they lost in the first round five times and never made it past the Western Conference Finals.

That, coupled with the Blazers missing the playoffs in each of his final two seasons with the team, was the impetus behind him wanting to go elsewhere in order to contend for a championship.

Per ESPN's Jamal Collier, Lillard confirmed as much Wednesday, but he also expressed a desire to play for the Blazers again before his career is over, saying:

"Right now, I'm just in a space of like, this is where I am now. I'm in Milwaukee. I wanted the opportunity to contend, and our team has an opportunity to contend for this year and years to come, and I'm just living in that. But I definitely, when I was traded, I see a day where I'll be in a Trail Blazer uniform again before I'm done."

Lillard had his fair share of dominant performances while playing for the Blazers, averaging 25.2 points, 6.7 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 3.1 three-pointers made and 1.0 steal in 769 regular-season games, but he was a bit off Wednesday.

While Dame did finish with 25 points, seven assists and six boards, he was only 9-of-23 from the field, including just 3-of-13 from beyond the arc.

The Blazers managed to upset the Bucks 119-116, moving Portland to 15-33 on the season, while Milwaukee fell to 32-16.

Although the Bucks are still the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers are nipping at their heels, as they are all within two games.

Despite their strong record, the Bucks fired head coach Adrian Griffin last month and replaced him with Doc Rivers, who is 0-2 since joining the team.

Still, the Bucks are viewed as a top title contender with Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo leading the way, and if they win a championship, it could make he idea of going back to Portland even more attractive to the 33-year-old Lillard.