MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo says he could only run at about half his top speed as he raced to make a playoff comeback with the Bucks, who were ultimately eliminated in the opening round.
Antetokounmpo strained his left calf on April 9, in a win over the Boston Celtics, and did not play again.
“In our opinion, it wasn’t safe for me to go out and play, because I couldn’t run at my top speed,” Antetokounmpo said Friday, a day after Milwaukee’s season ended with a 120-98 loss to the Pacers. Indiana in the sixth game. “I could only run at 30 or 40%
“Even now I can’t run at full speed. This is probably going to take me a few days, weeks or months, whatever. “I don’t know how long it will be before I can get back to what I was doing.”
It is the second consecutive season in which Milwaukee has fallen in the first round of the playoffs with its star limited by injuries.
Antetokounmpo, twice named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player, missed two and a half games of last year’s series, in which Milwaukee lost 4-1 to the Miami Heat, due to a lower back injury.
Now, the Greek star is considering the possibility of modifying his program of activities in the break between campaigns. He may even have to adapt his style of play in an effort to stay healthy.
“I have to have a little more luck,” he considered. “I have to be a little more careful. I might even have to adjust my game. “There are a lot of things I’m willing to do, anything so that I can be there on the court and not let my teammates down.”
Antetokounmpo has made an extraordinary recovery from injury before. The most notable example was in 2021, when he missed the last two games of the Eastern Conference finals due to a hyperextended knee but played in the entire NBA Finals.
He ended up scoring 50 points in Game 6, a victory over the Phoenix Suns, with which Milwaukee clinched the title.
This injury was different.
2024-05-03 23:44:00
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