Blazers' Damian Lillard Marches in Portland Protest Against George Floyd Killing

Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard marched in a protest Thursday in response to the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who was killed in Minneapolis Police custody on May 25.

Jayati Ramakrishnan of the Oregonian provided more details:

"Demonstrators who gathered in Southeast Portland for an eighth night of protests Thursday had one of Portland’s most popular figures in their midst. Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard joined the gathering, and marched with the group of protesters to Waterfront Park.

"Donning a teal mask, Lillard walked among marchers as the group of thousands made their way from Revolution Hall, across the Morrison Bridge and into downtown Portland."

As Ramakrishnan noted, Lillard has let his voice be heard on numerous issues involving racial inequality and police brutality. Of note, he and other Blazer teammates wore "I Can't Breathe" T-shirts during pregame warmups in response to the death of Eric Garner, who was killed as a result of a chokehold while being restrained by New York City police in 2014. Other NBA teams wore the shirts as well.

Lillard's also been vocal on social media, offering a response to San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman's comments to New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who told Daniel Roberts of Yahoo Finance that he would never "agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country."

Lillard joins a host of other NBA players who have joined nationwide protests against racial inequality and police brutality.

That list includes Indiana Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon, Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns, Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry and Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young, among others.