Lakers vs Bucks: Bittersweet Night as Reggie Miller Surpassed by Damian Lillard in Close Loss

Reggie Miller made history and Damian Lillard rewrote it. The Milwaukee Bucks All-Star just surpassed the Indiana Pacers icon to rank fourth on the All-Time 3 points made list in Friday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers. It was, however, difficult to savor this individual record when it didn’t tide his team over the victory line. The Bucks lost to the Lakers 122-123 in a game where Dame Dolla ended with 28 points, 1 assist, and 5 rebounds in 38 minutes.

Lillard hit his 2,561st 3-pointer in this game. Reggie Miller was among the first to respond to his historic feet via his TNT colleague, Chris Haynes. He also shared the message on his Instagram Stories.

“Congratulations Dame on moving up the charts. I’ve always loved your mentality and approach as a shooter. You’ve put in the long hours required to call yourself one of the best in the world. Continued success,” Miller expressed after being pushed to the fifth spot.

Reggie Miller was once the all-time leader in three-pointers made. Four players, Ray Allen, Stephen Curry, James Harden, and now Lillard have since eclipsed him. Lillard is still over a 1000 threes behind the No. 1 spot held by Stephen Curry. As amazing as the Bucks’ superteam is, Miller’s colleagues at TNT are not as confident.

Damian Lillard not enough for the Bucks to be fearsome

Since the arrival of Doc Rivers as head coach, Miller’s friends Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley have been overtly critical. Their expectations are higher with a championship-winning coach and the combination of Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo. With those expectations come tough love.

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Only yesterday, Barkley said on Inside the NBA, “There’s Giannis and Dame, but nobody fears them because they don’t have a lot of athletic ability.” Shaq was also critical of them before the All-Star Weekend saying the Bucks play too “nice.”

Their blunt critiques seem to be working. The Bucks have had a slow turnaround since the All-Star break looking like an improved team. But their six-game winning streak was cut short today. Lillard is averaging 24.4 points so far.

He initially struggled against the Lakers, particularly while D’Angelo Russell was at his offensive best today. Dame missed his first four attempts from beyond the arc, eventually making his 2,561st three with 2:50 minutes remaining in the second quarter. He added another three to his record in the first half.

With a long career ahead of him, many predict that Lillard will go past Ray Allen to be in the top 3 atleast. Fans, however, are waiting to see if the Bucks cash in on his talent.

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