Oakland, California.Memories came flooding back as Damian Lillard pulled into Oakland High School. As a senior, he spent his last period of the day swimming in the pool. Every time there was an event, he would go to the theater to escape class. The route he would follow to get lunch.
When he was a member of the Class of 2008, he was just an ordinary student. Furthermore, he has never lost sight of his origins.
Leaning against a wall at Oakland High, with one of the trophy cases a few feet to his right, Lillard remarked, “I was just a normal kid.” They were aware of my basketball prowess, but none of this was anticipated. I therefore constantly remind myself of the significance of the voyage whenever I reflect on it. Everyone will see where I am today, but when I reflect on the journey’s moments, that’s what sometimes chills me out about how it all came to pass.
With games in his hometown of Oakland and San Francisco this weekend, Lillard, the NBA All-Star and star guard for the Milwaukee Bucks, is back in the Bay Area. He will try to win three straight 3-point contests on Saturday before being selected for the league’s midseason showcase on Sunday to play in the All-Star Game for the eighth time.
He had to earn everything that came his way as a two-star recruit straight out of high school, first at Weber State, where he was named an All-American, and then in the NBA, when Portland selected him with the sixth overall pick in 2012. He won an Olympic gold medal and was named an All-NBA player.
The journey wasn’t simple. Additionally, he returned to Oakland High on Thursday to assist in easing the route for a few current students.
Lillard visited his alma mater to introduce the Damian Lillard Scholars program to kick off his All-Star weekend. with homage to Portland State, where his NBA career started with the Trail Blazers, he is assisting with the distribution of $25,000 scholarships to kids at nine East Bay high schools, which will aid with out-of-state tuition if they decide to enroll.
Princess Momoh-Danga, a senior at Oakland High who has applied to Portland State, stated, “It means a lot that he gave me this opportunity.”
The project’s primary grant came from Lillard, and it will also get extra funding to help scholarship applicants with costs like food, lodging, clothes, textbooks, and transportation. Some Portland supporters of Lillard have also made contributions.
NBA All-Star Damien Lilliard, who currently plays for Milwaukie, was referred to the Portland State University president Ann Cudd as “one of Portland’s most exciting and inspiring civic leaders.”One of the Oregonians, Dave Killen
Offering this scholarship to East Bay students and partnering with one of Portland’s most dynamic and inspirational civic leaders makes us really proud. Ann Cudd, the president of Portland State, said in a statement. Portland has received so much love from Damian Lillard that PSU considers him one of our own. We are excited to work with him to identify routes for students from his hometown to pursue an education at PSU.
15 of the 27 applicants—including six from Oakland High—who are qualified to be Damian Lillard scholars have been accepted to Portland State thus far. When Lillard played at Weber State, Portland State was a competitor in the Big Sky Conference, but he has strong links to the institution because his sister graduated and because Portland holds special meaning for him.
Giving out $25,000 in scholarships is no easy task. According to Lillard, he wanted to ensure that his actions had a significant effect.
Instead of just doing something tiny and saying, “Oh, look, I did something,” Lillard stated that when it comes to helping and supporting others, “I want to do it to the point where I know it’s going to make a real impact and lift people up and really inspire them.” That’s what this is, I believe.
Every time Lillard returns to the Bay, it’s a huge deal.
In his 18 NBA regular-season games at Golden State, in Oakland and San Francisco, he has averaged 25.9 points; only LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Kevin Durant have averaged higher among visiting players who have played in at least 18 games at the Warriors’ current home of Chase Center or its predecessor, Oracle Arena. Only James Harden has more 3-pointers as a visitor than Lillard, who has 64 in those games when he returns to the Bay.
“Being home means everything,” Lillard remarked. Reaching my professional and personal goals and then being able to return home to visit old friends and all the things that have shaped who I am gives me a wonderful feeling every time.
— Tim Reynolds, writer for AP Basketball
