Sunday was not a good day for the Milwaukee Bucks. The No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference got off on the wrong foot in their series against the No. 8 seed Miami Heat, losing 130-117. It was a dispirited effort from the team, who looked emotionally drained when their NBA superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, went down with an injury.
About midway through the first quarter, Antetokounmpo drove to the basket off of a pass from Joe Ingles. As he went up, Kevin Love slid underneath him attempting to draw a charge. Antetokounmpo’s legs were taken out in the process, causing a hard fall to the ground.
The Greek Freak would remain in the game to shoot his free throws and finish out his regularly allotted playing time. He checked into the game early in the second quarter but lasted only a minute before being subbed out, heading to the locker room immediately.
Luckily for Antetokounmpo and the Bucks, there was no serious damage done. In fact, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, there is optimism that Antetokounmpo will be able to get back on the court Wednesday night for Game 2. He shared the update on Run It Back on FanDuel TV.
That optimism likely stems from all of the tests that were done coming back clean, according to head coach Mike Budenholzer. “There was an X-ray that was clear here, so we’ll monitor him, see how he does,” Budenholzer said. “See how he wakes up, how he feels the rest of tonight and tomorrow.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS COVERAGE: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks & Miami Heat Updates
Without Antetokounmpo in the game, the Bucks had no real answers for the Heat. Miami scored at will, as they were the lowest-scoring team in the NBA during the regular season but still hung 130 points on Milwaukee.
“That’s our guy, we hope he’s gonna be well and back out there with us Wednesday,” Khris Middleton said. “But we just gotta focus on who’s out there at the same time. They had a guy go down also and they continued to compete and play well. Same mindset we tried to have. Sucks that our guy goes down or can’t return, but we still got a job to do out there.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS COVERAGE: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks & Miami Heat Updates
While the Bucks would certainly prefer Antetokounmpo to be in the lineup, they aren’t going to lay down and roll over should he not be able to play. This is a deep, talented, championship-experienced roster that knows how to win even without their star in the lineup.
“We don’t want him to be hurt, but it’s still next man up mentality,” Jrue Holiday said. “We have enough talent on this team to cover for him until he comes back or possibly comes back. Again, I just don’t want to see him hurt because I know what it feels like, especially Game 1 of the playoffs.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS COVERAGE: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks & Miami Heat Updates
There are always some overreactions to Game 1s of a playoff series. Some rust was expected for Milwaukee, who hadn’t played in a week. The Heat, on the other hand, played twice in the Play-In Tournament, so they were in game shape and ready to go.
Want the latest in NBA analysis, breaking news, and insider information? Click Here.
