“I got three kids…” Damian Lillard opens up on mental struggles going through divorce and continuing to play basketball

Damian Lillard and Kay’La Hanson were together for almost 15 years, before Lillard filed for divorce after 2 years of marriage.

“I got three kids…” Damian Lillard opens up on mental struggles going through divorce and continuing to play basketball

Damian Lillard has gone through a tough year in 2023, opens up about mental struggles (image via Ron Bohning/X)

Damian Lillard is a soft-spoken superstar. He lets his game do the talking for him. He is one of the top 75 players in league history. Now with the Milwaukee Bucks, his goal is to win the championship which has eluded him so far. But, he is also going through one of the toughest moments of his life. The superstar decided to open up during his visit to his former city a few days back.

Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports caught up with Lillard during his first trip back to his former proving grounds. Lillard talked about how he never thought of leaving the Portland Trail Blazers. He envisioned that one day he would be able to win the Championship for himself and the city that he called home. But Lillard revealed something else that has been bothering him since last year. He said about life:

People say, ‘When I hoop I ain’t thinking about nothing,' but I’m not 21. I got three kids. I’m tight with my family and I’m going through a divorce.
Damian Lillard said

Lillard alluded this to the divorce he is going through from his wife of two years Kay’la. Lillard filed for divorce in October.

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Damian Lillard and Kay’La Hanson have three kids. They met when Lillard was in Weber State. To let go of a life he has shared with her for so long has been mentally tasking for the superstar. So along with leaving his beloved Trail Blazers and his wife at the same time has been tough on Lillard. But he says that he is stable now.

Lillard mentioned that having the right people around him has brought that stability to his life. He did not want the emotional stress from those two events to have an impact on the career he had built through hard work. Leaving a life he had for 11 years has not been easy on the superstar.

Damian Lillard and looking ahead to the future

Since he was a high schooler Lillard wanted to be the best basketball player he could be. He transferred schools twice to get himself in the best situation for his career. That mentality has stuck with Lillard. But he is also loyal. So extremely loyal that he never envisioned leaving Portland.

Damian Lillard is going through the mental struggle of a divorce from his wife Kay’La
Damian Lillard is going through the mental struggle of a divorce from his wife Kay’La (image via Instagram)

But despite spending 11 years with the franchise, Lillard fell short. Now at age 33 and staring down the last few years of his career, he had no choice. Leaving the Trail Blazers was hard for him. Leaving his wife who he had a life of almost 15 years at the same time was even harder.

Lillard just showed that even the best of the best have a lot to deal with. But with the right support and direction, they can move forward.

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