Lillard not worried about injury: 'The best days for me have yet to come'

Despite sitting out the remainder of what's been the most injury-plagued season of his distinguished career, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard says he doesn't need to prove anything whenever he makes his eventual return - and that his brightest moments still lay ahead.

"My resume and who I am speaks for itself," Lillard told Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes. "I know that the best days for me have yet to come. So, I'm not looking at it like I got to come back and make them remember me. I know who I am. I know what I do. And when I get back on the floor, you know, that's gonna be that."

Lillard was held to just 29 appearances this season while battling an abdominal injury. The six-time All-Star and member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team revealed that he'd first started experiencing abdominal pain as early as 2016 or 2017, per Haynes.

Lillard underwent surgery in January; Portland ultimately shut him down for the rest of 2021-22 on March 21.

When Lillard takes the court next season, he'll be 32 years old. With players older than him still excelling - the current points- and assists-per-game leaders, LeBron James and Chris Paul, rank among the five oldest active players in the league - the Trail Blazers star sees no reason why he can't return to his previous standard as one of the game's top playmakers.

"It seems like after I announced that I was having surgery, people were like, ‘Oh, he's 31 and having this done,’" Lillard said. "Man, 31 is not old. They act like you're old when we have guys around the league older than me that are still playing at a high level.

"Also, my game is not based on me playing above the rim. I'm a sniper. I shoot. I got a good step. I can think the game. I can manipulate the game, and I know how to play. My game will age well."