Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers told reporters he doesn’t know if Giannis Antetokounmpo will return after re-injuring his calf in Friday’s 102-100 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Antetokounmpo was initially expected to miss 4-6 weeks.
Although Rivers said the team has no plans to shut down Antetokounmpo this season, he said he could not answer when Antetokounmpo will return.
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“Hopefully, like before, sooner rather than later, but there’s no timetable,” Rivers said when asked about Antetokounmpo’s diagnosis.
Antetokounmpo reportedly played three quarters with an injury and then suffered a further injury in the final minute. He scored 14 of the 22 points in the final quarter and helped the Bucks chase the score to 5 points from a 23-point deficit early in the fourth quarter.
Rivers said he tried to take Antetokounmpo off the game after discovering he was injured, but Antetokounmpo wanted to stay in the game.
“I personally thought he liked it for most of the second half,” Rivers said. “I asked our team five times. Personally, I didn’t like what my eyes saw. Giannis was defiant about staying.”
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Antetokounmpo said he didn’t want to leave the game because he felt he could still contribute to the team.
“It’s not for my teammates, it’s for myself,” Antetokounmpo said. “I just didn’t like giving up. I felt like I couldn’t explode. I could jog. I couldn’t stay on my toes, so I was jogging on my heels for most of the race.
“I didn’t have the same explosiveness, but I still felt like I would help. But in the end, when it exploded, I had to get out. I couldn’t walk.”
Rivers eventually took him off the game, and his brother Thanasis comforted him on the bench.
While Rivers has noted similar injuries to players across the league, he’s still trying to figure out the best way to keep Antetokounmpo on the court. Rivers felt like they waited a long time to bring him back and put a minutes limit on him when he returned.
Antetokounmpo was first injured in early December and missed eight games before returning against the Bulls on December 27. In his first game back, he showed off his explosiveness with a windmill dunk in the final seconds of the game.
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The Bucks are 18-26 this season and 3-11 without Antetokounmpo on the court. Without him, the Bucks’ frontcourt will rely on point guards Ryan Rollins and Bobby Portis, Kyle Kuzma and Myles Turner. The Bucks’ second-leading scorer, Kevin Porter Jr., is also out with an oblique injury. Antetokounmpo’s injury comes at a critical moment, with the February 4 trade deadline approaching.