Can Bucks avoid elimination? When will know about Giannis and Dame?
The Bucks face elimination against Indiana in Game 6 of their playoff series; can the Bucks survive without one or both superstars? We discuss.
INDIANAPOLIS – The Milwaukee Bucks canceled a formal Thursday shootaround at Gainbridge Fieldhouse late on Wednesday night, opting in favor of a film session to prepare for a must-win Game 6. But it did not mean Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard were passive participants.
In the late morning Thursday, Lillard was upgraded to questionable to play as he continued his treatment of right Achilles tendinitis. After going through his normal pre-game shooting routine, the point guard was upgraded further to available to play.
Antetokounmpo, however, did not go through any on-court movements prior to the game and he was ruled out.
Damian Lillard upgraded to available vs. Pacers
The star duo was officially ruled as doubtful to play tonight after the team arrived in Indianapolis on Wednesday evening, but Lillard has made visible strides to a return to action, beginning with a pregame shooting session on Tuesday night at Fiserv Forum. He then was initially upgraded to questionable on Thursday afternoon, and then available after his pregame warmup.
The all-star point guard aggravated a right Achilles injury at the end of regulation in an overtime Game 3 loss on April 26. He had initially felt an issue in the tendon in the Bucks’ regular season finale April 14 but returned to play in Game 1 against the Pacers on April 21.
Being familiar with the injury, Lillard was blunt in stating what could – and could not – be done with the injury on April 18. Along with contrast (hot and cold) treatments, Lillard said, “I think if it’s something major then you would rest it, but you just gotta load it up, you know? Continue to build the strength around it. A lot of calf rises, single raise, jumping rope, jumps, stuff like that so you build up the strength around it to support it. That’s kind of been the process.”
He initially was in a walking boot to protect the ligament after finishing Game 3 vs. the Pacers but was out of it by the next night – though walking with a limp. By Game 5, he was getting up shots.
Which, though, is a long way from safely playing in an NBA game – let alone getting through it to play in potentially three more series.
“That’s not something that you want to play with,” he said after the game on April 26. “It’s one of those spots on your body where literally you can’t do nothing about it. If you can’t move, you can’t move.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo injury update
The two-time league MVP has been sidelined since April 9 when he suffered a strain of the soleus muscle in his left calf, an injury that sent him immediately to the court floor. He had been managing a left hamstring injury for weeks before that, and had dealt with tendinitis in his left Achilles tendon earlier in the season.
The previous injuries have added a layer of complexity to the process for Antetokounmpo, who began some kind of court work the week of April 15 but wasn’t running without restriction – per Rivers – until last weekend.
A severe strain of the calf muscles tend to take multiple weeks to heal, and though Antetokounmpo is known for sometimes superhuman healing powers, he is now over three weeks post injury. And unlike Lillard, Antetokounmpo has not yet been seen doing any court work.