Giannis Antetokounmpo strained his left calf during the third quarter of Tuesday’s win against Boston.
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo avoided serious injury and has been diagnosed with a left calf injury after leaving Tuesday’s 104-91 win against the Boston Celtics because of the injury. He will miss the final three games of the regular season, according to the team.
MEDICAL UPDATE: Giannis Antetokounmpo left last night’s win vs. Boston in the third quarter with a left soleus (calf) injury.
Antetokounmpo underwent an MRI last night that confirmed the diagnosis of a left soleus (calf) strain. He will miss the remaining three games of the…
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) April 10, 2024
What happened: Antetokounmpo was heading up the court after a 3-point basket by Boston’s Derrick White late in the third quarter when the two-time MVP grabbed his left calf and took a seat on the floor before being helped off the court.
“Any time you see one of your teammates go down, it’s I think a real level of concern,” Bucks guard Damian Lillard said after the game. “We spend a lot of time around each other, more than we would our families. I think that was the No. 1 thing. And then for it to be your best player, the most important part of our team, at this point in the season, it was like an, ‘Oh, (damn)’ moment, especially because there was nobody else around.”
Bucks officials said Antetokounmpo had a left soleus strain. The soleus is a muscle in the calf.
Impact on Bucks: The injury comes just as the Bucks are gearing up for the playoffs. The Bucks have three games remaining in the regular season and are No. 2 in the Eastern Conference. However, the New York Knicks trail the Bucks by one game in the standings for that slot.
Additionally, the No. 4-seeded Orlando Magic and No. 5-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers trail the Bucks by two games and the No. 6-seeded Indiana Pacers are 2.5 games behind Milwaukee.
“We’re going to need him, so if he’s got to get rest, if he’s got to sit out these (next) couple of games to be ready for the playoffs, we need him to be as close to 100% as he can be,” Bucks forward Khris Middleton said.
There won’t be much time for the Bucks to worry about that, though, as they host the Magic tonight (8 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass), visit the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday (8 p.m. ET, NBA TV) and close out the season in Orlando on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, NBA League Pass).
Antetokounmpo has missed three games since mid-March with tendinopathy in his left hamstring. He also missed a game on March 4 with left Achilles tendinitis.
This had been just the fifth time in the last 30 games that the Bucks had Antetokounmpo, Lillard and Middleton all available.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
