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Sitting with ice packs taped around his knees and his feet in an ice bucket following the Milwaukee Bucks game on March 15 – in other words a part of his usual postgame recovery routine – Giannis Antetokounmpo had a simple message about hyperextending his left knee earlier in the game.
"I try not to make it bigger than what it is," he said matter-of-factly.
In a way, he was anticipating what inevitably would come with the Bucks having spun out of playoff contention and into the draft lottery picture for the first time since 2016: Another potentially serious injury shelving him for the remaining games of an already truncated season.
That is the new tension now between the 31-year-old superstar and the team, as multiple sources told the Journal Sentinel that Antetokounmpo has made it clear he plans to finish whatever games he can, when able. Even as he returned from a serious, second right calf strain on March 2, Antetokounmpo had let it be known he intended to play as often as possible.
"For me, every game is worth it," he said after the victory against the Indiana Pacers.
More: What does Giannis Antetokounmpo want? He wants to retire with the Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks, on the other hand, now have their reservations.
Though an MRI on March 16 revealed no structural damage to his left knee, Antetokounmpo was downgraded from questionable with a left ankle sprain to out about 90 minutes before the game against Cleveland on March 17.
Then, in his pregame media session, head coach Doc Rivers was asked if the team would weigh the risk of putting Antetokounmpo back on the court vs. the reward of him playing again.
"That's a good question," Rivers said. "I don't have the answer, but it's a very good question. Honestly, that's all I have.
"It's something we will talk about."
The organization did discuss it, however, and league sources confirmed to the Journal Sentinel they would not be opposed to having Antetokounmpo miss the final 14 games of the season. The Athletic initially reported the team's interest in sitting the two-time MVP.
Antetokounmpo, already ruled out for the March 18 game against Utah with the bone bruise and hyperextension in his knee, will have missed 33 games when the team heads to Phoenix on March 20.
He previously sat out stretches due to a left adductor strain and two strains of his right calf. He missed a game against Golden State on Oct. 30 with soreness in his left knee and March 14 vs. Atlanta with the left ankle sprain.
Though he did not want to get imaging done on the knee initially, testing revealed a bone bruise along with the hyperextension, following an awkward landing after a dunk against the Pacers.
It is just the latest injury in a snake-bitten season for Antetokounmpo. Following a game in Miami on March 12, Antetokounmpo acknowledged that, "Yeah, it's tough. I don't know how the team feels, but for me personally it's a tough season."
He added: "And obviously, I don't think I've ever got hurt and missed 25, 30 games into the season. So, I'm just trying to take it game-by-game. I'm grateful, happy that I'm out here competing, try to play the right way. That makes me feel good. But at the same time, it's in my nature to win games and I want us to figure it out."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Giannis wants to finish season despite injury; Bucks have reservations
Continue reading...
"I try not to make it bigger than what it is," he said matter-of-factly.
In a way, he was anticipating what inevitably would come with the Bucks having spun out of playoff contention and into the draft lottery picture for the first time since 2016: Another potentially serious injury shelving him for the remaining games of an already truncated season.
That is the new tension now between the 31-year-old superstar and the team, as multiple sources told the Journal Sentinel that Antetokounmpo has made it clear he plans to finish whatever games he can, when able. Even as he returned from a serious, second right calf strain on March 2, Antetokounmpo had let it be known he intended to play as often as possible.
"For me, every game is worth it," he said after the victory against the Indiana Pacers.
More: What does Giannis Antetokounmpo want? He wants to retire with the Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks, on the other hand, now have their reservations.
Though an MRI on March 16 revealed no structural damage to his left knee, Antetokounmpo was downgraded from questionable with a left ankle sprain to out about 90 minutes before the game against Cleveland on March 17.
Then, in his pregame media session, head coach Doc Rivers was asked if the team would weigh the risk of putting Antetokounmpo back on the court vs. the reward of him playing again.
"That's a good question," Rivers said. "I don't have the answer, but it's a very good question. Honestly, that's all I have.
"It's something we will talk about."
The organization did discuss it, however, and league sources confirmed to the Journal Sentinel they would not be opposed to having Antetokounmpo miss the final 14 games of the season. The Athletic initially reported the team's interest in sitting the two-time MVP.
Antetokounmpo, already ruled out for the March 18 game against Utah with the bone bruise and hyperextension in his knee, will have missed 33 games when the team heads to Phoenix on March 20.
He previously sat out stretches due to a left adductor strain and two strains of his right calf. He missed a game against Golden State on Oct. 30 with soreness in his left knee and March 14 vs. Atlanta with the left ankle sprain.
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Though he did not want to get imaging done on the knee initially, testing revealed a bone bruise along with the hyperextension, following an awkward landing after a dunk against the Pacers.
It is just the latest injury in a snake-bitten season for Antetokounmpo. Following a game in Miami on March 12, Antetokounmpo acknowledged that, "Yeah, it's tough. I don't know how the team feels, but for me personally it's a tough season."
He added: "And obviously, I don't think I've ever got hurt and missed 25, 30 games into the season. So, I'm just trying to take it game-by-game. I'm grateful, happy that I'm out here competing, try to play the right way. That makes me feel good. But at the same time, it's in my nature to win games and I want us to figure it out."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Giannis wants to finish season despite injury; Bucks have reservations
Continue reading...
