MILWAUKEE — On March 2, after Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo returned from a calf strain that had kept him out for well over a month on either side of the trade deadline and All-Star break, I asked him if he had ever considered sitting out for the remainder of the season.
He simply shook his head no.
A few weeks later, he remains defiant in the face of yet another injury.
Late in the third quarter of the Bucks’ win over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday, Antetokounmpo landed awkwardly after a dunk. He didn’t play in the fourth quarter and was later diagnosed with a hyperextended left knee and a bone bruise. ESPN reported Tuesday that he’ll be out for a week. If it were up to the Bucks, however, he wouldn’t return this season at all.
The Bucks and Antetokounmpo are not on the same page about his status for the rest of the season, according to a report from The Athletic on Wednesday. The organization wants to shut him down, but Antetokounmpo has “informed the team he has no desire to cut his season short.”
The Bucks are correct. It doesn’t make any sense for Antetokounmpo to play again this season, but good luck convincing him of that.
An injury-filled season for Antetokounmpo
Antetokounmpo got off to an unbelievable start this season, but has rarely been healthy since the opening few weeks. Here’s a look at his injury issues:
- Left groin strain: Out Nov. 20-26 (four games)
- Right calf strain: Out Dec. 5-26 (eight games)
- Right calf strain: Out Jan. 27-March 1 (15 games)
- Hyperextended left knee: Out March 17-current (one game and counting)
All told, Antetokounmpo has only appeared in 36 games. He is guaranteed to make a career-low number of appearances and has already been ruled ineligible for postseason awards.
Multiple strains to the same calf are particularly concerning, especially given his previous history of calf injuries. He missed multiple weeks last season and sat out the final weeks of the regular season and the playoffs in 2024 due to strains to his left calf.
“This calf keeps coming up and it’s concerning,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said in January. “I’m not a doctor, but I’m smart enough to know that his calf keeps bothering him and there’s something that is there and it keeps happening, and that’s troublesome for all of us.”
All risk, no reward
Due in large part to Antetokounmpo’s continued injury problems, the Bucks are having their worst season in a decade.
A surprise 8-2 hot streak shortly before Antetokounmpo’s return from his second calf strain briefly provided hope of making a run at the Play-In Tournament, but there was a reason Bobby Portis called that run “fool’s gold.” The Bucks are 2-9 since then and have sunk to 28-40 — a mark that has them in 11th place in the Eastern Conference and 6½ games behind the Charlotte Hornets for the final Play-In spot.
The Bucks have 14 games remaining, including an upcoming West Coast trip, followed by matchups with the San Antonio Spurs, Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons. Even if they somehow won the rest of their games, they would finish 42-40. The Hornets would only have to go 8-5 in that extremely unlikely scenario to finish above them.
In short, the Bucks’ playoff hopes are cooked.
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If anything, the team should want to lose as much as possible down the stretch. Their lottery situation is complicated — they will receive the worst of theirs and the New Orleans Pelicans‘ first-round picks — and they can only sink so far at this point. But they’re currently tied with the Chicago Bulls for the 10th-worst record. Finishing with the ninth-worst record wouldn’t hurt.
More than anything, though, the Bucks must think of the big picture. Antetokounmpo has been the subject of extensive trade rumors all season and can become a free agent in the summer of 2027.
While the franchise would clearly prefer Antetokounmpo to sign another extension and ultimately retire with the Bucks, that seems unlikely. The Bucks were willing to listen to trade offers ahead of the deadline, and almost certainly will do so again in the summer. Trading him would sting, but it could provide the organization with a chance to completely reset its future.
For the Bucks to command a massive haul for the 31-year-old Antetokounmpo this summer, he must be fully healthy. His recent issues, particularly with his calf, have likely already frightened some teams. If he suffered another injury in a meaningless game down the stretch, that could be a major blow for the Bucks’ long-term hopes.
Antetokounmpo refuses to cheat the game
Antetokounmpo is one of the strongest and most athletic players in the league, but no one would call him one of the most skilled. To become a two-time MVP and a 10-time All-Star, he had to be one of the NBA‘s hardest workers and most relentless competitors.
“I hope a lot of people see me and I represent the people who might not have it all, might not be the most talented people, but they are disciplined and they show up every night to do the right thing,” Antetokounmpo said last year when he reached 20,000 career points. “No matter the outcome, they keep coming back and keep on being disciplined in their craft. I hope I can represent all those people.
“They told me that the best players — the greats — never get bored,” Antetokounmpo continued. “It doesn’t matter what I feel. If I feel good, bad, if I’m bored or I’m excited, if I’ve lost the game or won the game, it does not matter. I will do what’s necessary. I will do the job. I won’t negotiate with myself.”
Antetokounmpo’s refusal to cheat the game is admirable. He has always done everything possible to be on the floor each night, and has had a steadfast belief that as long as he’s available, the Bucks have a chance to compete. How do you convince someone with that mindset to sit out if he’s able to play?
It might be one thing if the Bucks were set on trading him this summer and didn’t mind damaging the relationship, but that’s not the case. Antetokounmpo has still never formally asked for a trade, and the front office is still holding out hope that he’ll sign an extension. Forcing him to sit out may damage whatever slim chance remains of that happening.
In the end, the Bucks may have to hope that Antetokounmpo does something he hasn’t done throughout this entire drawn-out saga: put the organization’s long-term desires ahead of his own.
