“I Don’t Think the League Is Ready”: Draymond Green Sends Warning After Damian Lillard’s Impeccable Off-Season Work Goes Viral

Damian Lillard is set to make his return to the hardwood in the upcoming 2026-27 season. The last time Lillard played in an NBA game was on April 27, 2025, during the Milwaukee Bucks' first-round playoff matchup against the Indiana Pacers. Dame suffered a torn left Achilles tendon after only six minutes of play. Since then, even after getting traded to the Portland Trail Blazers the following season, we haven't seen him in action.

However, it appears that Blazers fans have something to look forward to this coming season. Golden State Warriors veteran Draymond Green recently talked about Lillard's most recent shooting practice on his podcast. It seems that 'Dame Time' is looking better than ever after sinking 1,100 shots out of 1,168 attempts during a shooting practice. Green warned the league about Lillard's potential wrath next season.

"I can't say that I've ever seen anyone hit 1,100 out of 1,168," Green said on his podcast. "I'm also not about to sit there and watch Steph shoot 1,100 shots… He's gonna have to get his legs under him for sure and come back, but when he does, I don't think the league is ready to see the type of shooting display that Dame is about to put on."

Lillard carries a career field goal percentage of 43.9%, a number that undersells his actual impact as a shooter. Factor in that a significant portion of his attempts are contested, off-the-dribble pulls from well beyond the arc, and that efficiency starts to look remarkable.

His 37% from three, taken at distance and volume that few guards attempt, is the more telling metric. But the "Dame Time" moniker isn't built on percentages alone - it's built on when those shots fall. Lillard consistently ranks among the league's elite in clutch situations, turning high-leverage moments into a signature rather than a coincidence.

NBA Legend Looking Forward to Damian Lillard's Return After Ja Morant's Trade to Blazers

One of the most fascinating pairings of the offseason has to be Damian Lillard and Ja Morant. The Memphis Grizzlies were ready for a fresh start and shipped Morant off to the Portland Trail Blazers in late June.

Most people saw the Morant trade coming, what nobody saw coming was Portland being the team to pull the trigger. After all, the Blazers already have their franchise point guard in Lillard. Now the big question everyone's asking is whether two star players who essentially do the same thing can find a way to coexist and share the load without stepping on each other's toes.

Vince Carter isn't alone in watching this pairing closely. The Lillard-Morant backcourt is one of the more genuinely intriguing experiments of the upcoming season, not just because of the personalities involved, but because of what each player brings on the floor. Lillard's gravity beyond the arc forces defenses to chase him out wide; Morant's game thrives when defenses collapse into the paint.

On paper, they should make each other's jobs considerably easier.
Carter, speaking on his podcast in July, captured the anticipation well.

"The duo that I am interested to see, what it looks like, Ja Morant and Damian Lillard," Carter said on his podcast in July, clip reposted by KATU News on X. "Dame Dolla coming back, and I don't feel like he has anything to prove. But he's coming back home (to Portland). We've seen him working out; that man is ready to go."

Ready to go is an understatement. Lillard is returning from a torn Achilles, an injury that ended his season with the Bucks and led to a stunning waiver that brought him back to Portland. Morant, meanwhile, arrives fresh from Memphis after a stretch of seasons disrupted by suspensions and injury.

Both players have something to recalibrate. The question isn't whether Lillard can mentor Morant, it's whether two elite, ball-dominant guards, each climbing back from difficult stretches, can find a rhythm that makes the Blazers genuinely dangerous in the West.

If Dame could pass on some wisdom to Ja, they could turn out to be a scary duo in the Western Conference.