The Milwaukee Bucks and their fans are hoping to hear good news shortly on the status of star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Late in the third quarter of Tuesday night’s game against the Boston Celtics Antetokounmpo started up the court after a Boston basket, when he suddenly crumpled to the floor. Trainers came out to tend to him, and he did not return to the game.
You can see the moment Antetokounmpo went down here:
As you can see from the above clip, Antetokounmpo immediately reached for his left calf. Trainers came out to tend to the Milwaukee star, and he remained on the floor for an extended period before behind helped to the locker room by Bucks teammates:
Giannis Antetokounmpo was down on the floor with no contact. He was headed upcourt and crumbled to the ground.
His teammates helped him off the floor and back to the locker room.
— Jamal Collier (@JamalCollier) April 10, 2024
The team reported shortly thereafter that he had suffered a calf strain. According to ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Antetokounmpo will undergo an MRI of that left calf to determine the extent of the injury:
Speaking with the media after the game, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers indicated that Antetokounmpo was already undergoing testing for the injury:
Bucks coach Doc Rivers tells reporters that Giannis Antetokounmpo is undergoing testing for his left calf, an MRI and that Antetokounmpo just left a little while ago to get it done.
— Eric Nehm (@eric_nehm) April 10, 2024
Rivers was likely speaking for all Bucks fans when he shared this after the game as well:
Doc Rivers on the concern level with Giannis Antetokounmpo’s left calf injury:
“That’s a good question. High. But he’s Giannis. I think everyone probably feels the same way as I do right now. We’re just going hope for the best.”
— Jamal Collier (@JamalCollier) April 10, 2024
Milwaukee won the game against Boston by a final score of 104-91. The Bucks have three games left on their regular-season schedule, including a pair of potentially-critical games against the Orlando Magic. Milwaukee currently leads Orlando by 1.5 games in the Eastern Conference for the No. 2 seed. While the No. 2 seed slated to play against a play-in winner, the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference is likely looking at an opening-round series against the Indiana Pacers.
The first of those two games against Orlando is Wednesday night in Milwaukee.