Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Upgraded to Questionable
By Paul Bretl
Game 1 of the NBA Finals will kick off in just a few hours; however, at this time, we still don’t know whether or not the Milwaukee Bucks will be with their two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
After hyperextending his left knee in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks, the Bucks’ star would miss the final two games of that series. But the good news was that the ligaments in Giannis’ knee were intact and “sound,” which about 18 hours earlier seemed nearly impossible given how gruesome the injury looked.
Prior to Game 6 against Atlanta, there was reported “belief” that Antetokounmpo would play in Game 7 if necessary. But, fortunately, thanks to 52 combined points in Games 5 and 6 from Jrue Holiday, 58 from Khris Middleton, and strong performances from Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis, that was a moot point.
Despite the optimism, Giannis was initially listed on the injury report for Game 1 of the Finals as doubtful—which shouldn’t have been a huge surprise given the injury he sustained. When asked about Antetokounmpo’s progress, coach Mike Budenholzer would call the injury “day to day.”
However, as of late Tuesday morning, he has since been upgraded to questionable after “continued around-the-clock treatment,” according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and Giannis is now a “game-time decision.”
While understandably so, there may be some concern about Antetokounmpo re-injuring that knee if he comes back too soon, it’s important to remember that the Milwaukee Bucks clearly know much more about this situation than any of us. So if the medical staff clears him to play and is comfortable in making that decision, then Giannis should play.
From the sounds of it, this is a decision that will come down to the wire for the Bucks. Could there be some gamesmanship involved? Perhaps. But I don’t see that being the case. Based on everything we’ve heard over the last week, Antetokounmpo sounds very close to returning.