Damian Lillard Stats Tonight: How did Bucks star perform against Thunder in Emirates NBA Cup Final? (Dec. 17)

Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks faced the OKC Thunder in the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup Final. Lillard took home his first hardware even though it's not on the level of an NBA championship. The Bucks defeated the Thunder 97-81 to win the Emirates NBA Cup.

Lillard was part of the starting lineup along with Andre Jackson Jr., Taurean Prince, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez. He entered the game averaging 25.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.0 steals, while shooting 45.0% from the field.

The eight-time All-Star finished the game with 23 points, four rebounds, four assists and a steal. He did most of his damage in the third quarter, when the Bucks began pulling away from the Thunder.

Here are Damian Lillard's stats for the game:

Players

PTS

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

MIN

FG

3PT

FT

+/-

Damian Lillard

23

4

4

1

0

4

2

35:21

6-12

5-10

6-7

+15

---

How did Damian Lillard perform in the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup Final?

Damian Lillard was quiet in the first five minutes of the first quarter. He made his first shot at the 7:05 mark to trim the Thunder lead to 16-11. He hit a 3-point shot to give the Milwaukee Bucks the 22-20 advantage, leading to a timeout by coach Mark Daigneault.

The OKC Thunder was by just a point at the end of the first 12 minutes. In the second quarter, Lillard began the scoring with a tough shot from beyond the arc. Bucks legends Oscar Robertson and Ray Allen were shown getting impressed with the fadeaway corner 3.

Lillard finished the half with 12 points, three rebounds and four assists as Milwaukee led 51-50. The Bucks prevented the Thunder from doing any damage from beyond the arc, limiting the young team to just 1-for-17 from beyond the arc after the first two quarters.

Damian Lillard added eight points in the third quarter as the Milwaukee Bucks started to pull away from the OKC Thunder. The Bucks' defense reached another level by limiting the Thunder to just 14 points in the period. The Thunder was unable to stop Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was attacking the basket at every turn.

In the final period, the Bucks didn't remove their foot from the gas pedal and blew out the Thunder. Lillard was not as producing in the quarter since it wasn't needed. Antetokounmpo finished the game with 26 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists, while Gary Trent Jr. added 13 points off the bench.

As the buzzer sounded, the Bucks celebrated their 2024 Emirates NBA Cup triumph, but "The Greek Freak" told his teammates that the season was just beginning. He wants them to enjoy the moment and continue building a lot of momentum.

It has been a great turnaround for a Bucks team that started the season 2-8. They can now call themselves the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup winners. They resume their season on Friday against the league-leaders Cleveland Cavaliers.