Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is rehabbing his calf strain but there’s real doubt about his status to begin the Bucks’ first-round series against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday, league sources said Monday.
Antetokounmpo has shown a rare ability to recover quickly from injury. But he’s had multiple past injuries, including Achilles tendinitis and a hamstring issue, on his left leg, the same leg in which he strained his calf against the Boston Celtics on April 9. After missing the final three games of the regular season, his status is up in the air for Game 1 against the sixth-seeded Pacers, who beat Milwaukee four out of five times this season.
The eight-time All-Star played in 73 games this season, averaging 30.4 points, 11.5 rebounds and a career-high 6.5 assists per game.
Antetokounmpo is massively important to everything that the Bucks do on both ends of the floor, so they would love to have him back as soon as possible, but this is a tricky injury. Players do not rush back from calf injuries because they are difficult to play through, and playing through such an injury can endanger a player’s Achilles.
While every situation is unique, it is hard not to think about what happened to Kevin Durant in the 2019 NBA Playoffs when he suffered a calf injury, rehabbed for four weeks and then tore his Achilles in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, his first game back on the floor.
Therefore, even with Antetokounmpo’s rare ability to recover quickly from injuries and play through pain, the two-time MVP and the Bucks will need to be incredibly careful with this one.
The Bucks posted a 4-5 record without Antetokounmpo on the floor this season. If he is unable to start this series, the Bucks will lean on Damian Lillard to be the team’s primary scorer and playmaker, a role Lillard thrived in during his time with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Without Antetokounmpo, the Bucks would also hope to get more production out of Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis and Brook Lopez. Trying to beat the Pacers without Antetokounmpo will be difficult.
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