Damian Lillard makes franchise history with 39 in Bucks debut

The star point guard replaces Terry Cummings in Milwaukee’s record book. Cummings had 34 points in his debut in 1984.

Damian Lillard scored 39 points in his first game with his new team. The Milwaukee Bucks won 118-117 against the Philadelphia 76ers after blowing a 19-point lead.

In 1984, Terry Cummings scored 34 points in his first game for the Bucks, setting a record for the most points by a player in his Bucks debut.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 23 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in the game. He made 10 out of 22 shots, setting a new record for the most baskets in the franchise’s history.

Antetokounmpo has made 5,905 field goals in his career, while Abdul-Jabbar made 5,902 with the Bucks from 1969-75.

Lillard made a 3-pointer to give the Bucks the lead of 105-104. He got the ball back after missing a shot and passed it to Lillard who was open behind the arc.

Lillard’s shot led to an 11-0 scoring spree by Milwaukee, giving them a nine-point advantage with 2:45 left in the game.

The 76ers scored 7 points in a row to reduce the difference to 2 points, but Lillard responded with another 3-pointer with 1:13 remaining.

After Tobias Harris made a 3-pointer to bring the game within two points, Lillard went to the basket, got fouled, and made two free throws to seal the game with 11.5 seconds remaining. Lillard didn’t miss any of his 17 free-throw attempts.

Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. had 27 points, and Joel Embiid scored 24 points for the 76ers.

For the first time in his career, Lillard played for a different team. He had been with the Portland team for 11 seasons.

Lillard asked to be traded during the offseason and ended up in Milwaukee. In exchange, Milwaukee gave up Jrue Holiday, Grayson Allen, and a lot of draft picks to acquire the seven-time All-NBA guard.

This game was the first time Adrian Griffin coached the Milwaukee team. He was facing his former boss.

Griffin worked as an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors under Nick Nurse for the past five seasons. Nurse now coaches the 76ers.