Milwaukee Bucks star player Giannis Antetokounmpo faces another week on the sidelines after medical tests confirmed he suffered a hyperextended left knee along with a bone bruise, according to ESPN’s Tuesday report.
The injury adds to what has become a challenging season for the two-time MVP, who has already been absent for a career-high 31 games due to various health issues. Team officials plan to reassess his condition after seven days.
Head coach Doc Rivers provided some encouraging news, stating that recent medical scans showed no serious structural problems with the knee.
“The good news was it was really a good image. There was no damage,” Rivers said.
Despite the setbacks, the 31-year-old forward continues to put up impressive numbers when healthy, posting averages of 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists across 36 appearances this season. However, he’s on track to play fewer games than any of his 13 seasons with Milwaukee, falling short of his previous low of 61 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season.
Antetokounmpo had just returned to action on March 2 following a 15-game absence caused by a right calf strain. During a recent eight-game stretch where Milwaukee went 2-6, he was forced to miss two additional contests, and the team went 0-2 in games without their star player.
His most recent absence came during the team’s 122-99 defeat against the Atlanta Hawks on March 14, when he was ruled out due to a left ankle sprain.
The struggling Bucks currently hold a 28-39 record and trail the Charlotte Hornets by 5.5 games for the Eastern Conference’s final play-in tournament position. Charlotte sits at 34-34.
Throughout his career, the 10-time All-Star has maintained averages of 24.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 5.0 assists over 895 games, starting 830 of those contests.
