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Bucks Notes: Lillard, Giannis, Green, Portis, Edens

April 16th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Bucks point guard Damian Lillard didn’t participate in the team’s practice on Tuesday, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Lillard said after Sunday’s game that his sore left adductor muscle was bothering him at times, citing “little irritation-type moments” (link via Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).

As Nehm relays (via Twitter), head coach Doc Rivers told reporters on Tuesday that Lillard has undergone imaging, which came back clean, so today’s absence from practice was mostly just about giving him “a little more rest.”

“I think it’s that,” Rivers said when asked if the adductor was still bothering Lillard. “His Achilles. His groin. We want him to be as close to 100 percent as possible, if you can be that at this point.”

Teammate Bobby Portis downplayed Lillard’s lack of involvement in Tuesday’s practice session, noting that Game 1 of the Bucks’ series against Indiana is still several days away.

“I mean, to start off, man, it wasn’t a shock or anything that Dame sat out,” Portis said, per Nehm (Twitter link). “It’s, what, Tuesday? The game’s on Sunday. I don’t want nobody to put too much stress on that. I think we kind of blow things out of proportion too much.”

Here’s more on the Bucks:

  • Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf strain) and A.J. Green (ankle sprain) also missed Tuesday’s practice, tweets Nehm. A report earlier today indicated that Milwaukee is preparing to be without Antetokounmpo for the start of round one.
  • Portis discussed several topics in an interview with Shams Charania of Stadium (Twitter video link), including his Sixth Man of the Year candidacy and a February trade rumor involving him and then-Mavericks forward Grant Williams. “When I got hints of (that rumor), I’m like, no way I’m getting traded for – excuse my French, that’s my guy, I love competing against him – but I shouldn’t get traded for Grant Williams,” Portis said. “That don’t even sound right. … I don’t know how that moves the needle. The things I do and the things he can help the team do are just different.”
  • Wes Edens spoke to Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about his first 10 years as the Bucks’ co-owner and his expectations for the next decade, stressing that he has no plans to sell his stake in the team anytime soon, like his fellow co-owner Marc Lasry did last year.
  • Owczarski’s feature also includes quotes from various members of the Bucks organization discussing the impact that the current ownership group has had on the franchise in the last decade. “He brought a winning culture,” Khris Middleton said of Edens. “He’s a great businessman and him and his partners wanted to bring that business culture of winning to our sports team. He did a lot. He had his hands on a lot of things, on the day-to-day operations as far as making sure things were running smoothly and put people in place that he had confidence in that can take us to the next level as a world-class, first-class organization.”
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Bucks Preparing To Be Without Giannis For Start Of Playoffs

April 16th, 2024 at 9:39am CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks are preparing to be without star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo when they tip off their first-round series vs. the Pacers on Sunday, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Antetokounmpo missed the final three games of the regular season due to an injury that the Bucks diagnosed as a left soleus (calf) strain. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on Monday that there was some “real doubt” about Giannis’ ability to return for Game 1 this weekend, so Wojnarowski’s update today doesn’t come as a major surprise.

According to Woj, the Bucks are hopeful that treatment on Antetokounmpo’s calf strain will allow the two-time MVP to return sometime later in the series. He has been undergoing treatment “around the clock,” sources tell ESPN.

It’s a bit of déjà vu for the Bucks, who saw their superstar go down with a back injury in Game 1 of their first-round series vs. Miami a year ago. That injury cost Antetokounmpo two-and-a-half games of a series that the Heat ultimately won in five.

Milwaukee, which went 4-5 without Giannis this season, won’t want to put its franchise player at risk of a more serious injury by rushing him back too soon, but will want to do everything in its power to avoid a repeat of that 2023 scenario in this year’s playoffs.

Antetokounmpo is expected to show up on most MVP ballots this spring after averaging 30.4 points, 11.5 rebounds, and a career-high 6.5 assists in 35.2 minutes per game across 73 games for the Bucks. His 61.1% mark on field goal attempts this season also represented a career high.

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Central Notes: Cavaliers, DeRozan, Dosunmu, Drummond, Rivers, Giannis

April 15th, 2024 at 11:06am CST by Arthur Hill

The boos that the Cavaliers heard as they left the court after Sunday’s loss to Charlotte weren’t directed at the players, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. There was an organizational decision to rest several rotation members rather than prioritize a win that would have earned the team the No. 2 seed and avoided a potential second-round matchup with the league-leading Celtics. The result was embarrassing, as Cleveland was outscored 18-2 to end the game and will face Orlando in the first round after falling to fourth place.

Vardon notes that the loss of Craig Porter Jr. to a sprained ankle in the first quarter left the Cavs short on ball-handlers. With Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland and Caris LeVert all sitting out, there was no one to run the offense as the lead slipped away.

“It was difficult (to watch), but we had our plan in place with what we were gonna do with our guys,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “(Our starters) were gonna play those three quarters, and then Craig not being out there made it a little difficult to organize and score in the fourth quarter, but we wanted to stick to our plan, and no matter what was going to happen, we were going to give our guys an opportunity to play.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • Thirty-four-year-old DeMar DeRozan finished the season as the NBA’s leader in minutes, per Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic. The Bulls swingman was on the court for 2,988 minutes, his highest total in a decade, as he became the first player over age 30 to league the league in that category since LeBron James did it six years ago. “And he doesn’t miss practice. He doesn’t miss shootaround,” Coby White said of DeRozan. “He’s early to everything. Those are the things I notice. He’s always on time. He’s always one of the first ones there. You know how some guys can be. And for him, it’s just his professionalism day in and day out never changes.”
  • The Bulls have some injury concerns heading into Wednesday’s play-in game, notes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Ayo Dosunmu has a bruised quad and Andre Drummond is dealing with a sprained left ankle, and neither is certain to play against Atlanta. ‘‘Ayo is having issues with the running and the starting and the sprinting and the stopping,’’ coach Billy Donovan said. ‘‘There’s been some discomfort there for him. He has to get over that hurdle. I think there is hope he can clear those hurdles.’’
  • Bucks coach Doc Rivers is looking forward to a playoff matchup against Indiana, which was 4-1 against Milwaukee this season, according to Jamal Collier of ESPN. They haven’t faced each other since January 3, which was before Rivers took over the team. “Indiana has had our number all year, so perfect opponent,” Rivers said. “They’ve played great against us. They have great confidence against us. We’ll have great focus because we’re going to have to.”
  • Giannis Antetokounmpo may not be available for the start of that series, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Bucks star hasn’t played since Tuesday when he suffered a soleus strain in his left calf, and Rivers confirmed over the weekend that there are doubts about his status for the opener.
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Injury Notes: Ingram, Giannis, Green, Robinson, Melton

April 12th, 2024 at 7:40am CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, who has been sidelined since March 21 due to a left knee bone contusion, is expected to return to action on Sunday vs. the Lakers, TNT’s Chris Haynes said on Thursday night’s broadcast (Twitter video link via Pelicans Film Room).

Ingram’s impending return will give him an opportunity to get acclimated back into the Pelicans’ lineup ahead of the postseason. He’ll also get the chance to try to help New Orleans clinch a playoff berth — the team currently has a one-game lead on Phoenix for the No. 6 seed in the West. Since the Suns hold the tiebreaker, the Pelicans will need to win its remaining two games or have Phoenix lose at least once to hang onto the sixth spot.

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

  • Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said this week that he isn’t sure whether or not star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo will be ready for the start of the playoffs (Twitter link via Jamal Collier of ESPN). Antetokounmpo was in a walking boot on the sidelines during Wednesday’s game (Twitter link via Harris Stavrou of SPORT24). Milwaukee had another player bitten by the injury bug during that contest, as swingman A.J. Green went down with a left ankle sprain (Twitter link via Eric Nehm of The Athletic). Green has been ruled out for Friday’s matchup with Oklahoma City.
  • After missing five games due to a back issue in late March, Heat forward Duncan Robinson returned to action on March 31 and appeared in four more contests after that, but still wasn’t quite right, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Robinson will miss a third consecutive contest on Friday vs. Toronto as a result of that nagging back problem, and his availability for the start of the postseason is up in the air.
  • Sixers guard De’Anthony Melton returned on Tuesday from a lumbar spine injury, playing for just the fourth time since January 12. He admitted that the recovery process was a long, challenging one, as Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer relays. “Throughout the whole process, it was a lot of ups and downs,” Melton said. “Some days [were] better than others. Definitely there was a little doubt that crept into my mind. But I just kind of tried to stay with it and, every day, just take it moment by moment. And now we’re here.” Head coach Nick Nurse said Melton felt good after playing nearly 16 minutes on Tuesday, adding that the team will look to increase his minutes a little on Friday (Twitter link via Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports).
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Giannis Antetokounmpo To Miss Rest Of Regular Season With Left Soleus Strain

April 10th, 2024 at 4:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

APRIL 10, 4:50pm: According to the Bucks (Twitter link), an MRI confirmed that Antetkounmpo sustained a left soleus strain on Tuesday. He will miss the final three games of the regular season and will receive “daily treatment and evaluation,” per the team, with no return timeline provided.

APRIL 10, 6:42am: Antetokounmpo hasn’t sustained any damage to his left Achilles tendon, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While that’s good news for the Bucks and their star forward, Charania notes (via Twitter) that calf strains typically necessitate a recovery timeline of at least a week or two. Antetokounmpo’s return to play will be based on how his calf responds to treatment and rehab, Charania adds.

APRIL 9: Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo will undergo an MRI on his strained left calf, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Antetokounmpo injured himself merely jogging up the court during the third quarter against the Celtics on Tuesday. He crumbled to the ground in the backcourt and grabbed his left leg. He was carried back to the locker room by teammates, ESPN’s Jamal Collier writes.

The injury has been described as a left soleus strain. The soleus is a muscle in the back part of the calf.

Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers said after the game that his franchise player would also have his Achilles tendon evaluated, Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets. “So, we’re just gonna hope for the best,” Rivers said.

It’s an ominous development with the postseason fast approaching. Antetokounmpo missed two games during the first round of the playoffs last season due to a back injury. Miami upset top-seeded Milwaukee, 4-1.

Antetokounmpo was listed on the injury report prior to Tuesday’s game with left hamstring tendinopathy before being upgraded to probable. Milwaukee defeated Boston to strengthen its hold on the second seed in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks had lost their previous four games.

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Central Notes: Bucks, Middleton, Cavaliers, Donovan, Pistons

April 8th, 2024 at 11:08am CST by Arthur Hill

Bucks coach Doc Rivers responded to the team’s late-season swoon by holding a film session on Saturday, according to Eric Nehm and Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The meeting involved the team’s nine veteran rotation players — Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton, Brook Lopez, Malik Beasley, Bobby Portis, Patrick Beverley, Pat Connaughton and Jae Crowder — and each of them was given the opportunity to share his perspective on the team’s recent slide and offer suggestions on how to address it.

“It’s only the start of these tough and necessary conversations,” a source told Nehm and Charania.

While the session may have cleared the air, it didn’t help Milwaukee end its slump as the Bucks fell to New York on Sunday while getting outscored 72-48 in the second half. Although they remain in second place in the Eastern Conference, the Bucks are now just one game ahead of the Magic and Knicks and a game-and-half up on the Cavaliers, as home court advantage in the first round is no longer a guarantee.

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • Middleton’s bad luck with injuries continued Sunday as he had to leave the game after being accidentally struck in the face by Donte DiVincenzo, Nehm and Charania add. Rivers said Middleton had to make an emergency trip to the dentist, which is why he didn’t return to the game. “You just feel bad for him. The guy can’t catch a break,” the Bucks‘ head coach said. “I mean, what are the odds you go into a game, ‘OK, tonight, it will be my tooth gets knocked out.’ He’s having one of those seasons right now, but that’s OK because it can all turn for him. I thought he came with great spirit tonight, too, so just tough luck.”
  • The Cavaliers had a disastrous end to their five-game Western swing as they let a 26-point lead slip away in Sunday’s loss to the Clippers, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Cleveland went 1-4 on the trip and returns home in fifth place in the East. “Just a very disappointing loss,” said Isaac Okoro, who was able to return after missing four games with pain in his big toe. “Think we all know right now we need wins. Wanted this one bad.”
  • Head coach Billy Donovan admits that the Bulls aren’t having the type of season he expected, according to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago is just a game ahead of Atlanta for ninth place in the battle to host next week’s play-in game between the two teams. “I certainly didn’t come here [when I was hired in 2020] to say, ‘Hey, listen, let’s be a play-in team,’” Donovan said. “When I sat down first with [executive vice president of basketball operations] Arturas [Karnisovas] and [general manager] Marc [Eversley] about this, it was to try and build something. I still feel like we’re building something, but I don’t think anyone is happy with where we’re at.’’
  • James L. Edwards of The Athletic ranks the Pistons‘ best assets heading into the offseason. Not surprisingly, Cade Cunningham tops the list, with this year’s first-round pick coming in second, followed by Ausar Thompson, Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey.
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Central Notes: Lillard, Giannis, Craig, Cade, Flynn, Mitchell

April 5th, 2024 at 3:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Damian Lillard will be back in action for the Bucks on Friday vs. Toronto after missing the last three games due to personal reasons and an adductor strain, tweets Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT. Lillard will be looking to help Milwaukee get back on track after a pair of ugly losses this week to lottery-bound teams (the Wizards and Grizzlies).

As Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes, during Wednesday’s loss to the Grizzlies, Giannis Antetokounmpo was dealing with what the Bucks are calling left hamstring tendinopathy and didn’t look like his usual explosive self en route to 21 points on 10-of-23 shooting. He’s listed as doubtful to play in Friday’s game.

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • One reason why the Bulls signed Javonte Green for the rest of the season is a belief that Torrey Craig‘s knee still isn’t 100%, even though the veteran wing hasn’t missed a game in nearly a month. “I’m not a doctor, but I do know he has stiffness,” head coach Billy Donovan said of Craig, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “To me, he’s just not himself. That doesn’t mean he isn’t cleared to play. He is, and he wants to play, as well. Going back to the plantar fasciitis [from earlier in the season] and then the knee injury over All-Star break, he’s not moving the way he was before those things. He’s just not.”
  • Pistons guard Cade Cunningham hasn’t gotten any real buzz for this season’s Most Improved Player award, but does he have a case for consideration? James L. Edwards III of The Athletic explores that topic, laying out the argument for Cunningham as MIP.
  • Although it came in a loss, Malachi Flynn‘s 50-point outburst on Wednesday was a feel-good moment for a Pistons team that hasn’t had many of them and for a player who has had a tough season, writes Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (subscription required). A former first-round pick, Flynn has played for three teams in his contract year and has struggled to carve out consistent minutes for any of those clubs. “We’re all super happy for him because we all know what he’s had to go through,” Evan Fournier said. “I don’t want to say we wouldn’t give a (expletive) if it was Cade, but it wouldn’t be the same. The fact that it’s Malachi adds more to the story, I think.”
  • Following a loss to Phoenix on Wednesday, Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell spoke about the issues he’s having getting past a nagging knee ailment and his desire to have it get “1% better every day” in order to be ready to go for the playoffs. Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com has the story and the quotes from Mitchell.
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And-Ones: West, MVP Race, All-NBA, Comanche

April 3rd, 2024 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

NBA legend Jerry West is being inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame for a third time, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Previously enshrined as a player (1979) and as a member of the 1960 U.S. Olympic team (2010), the 85-year-old has now been elected as a Hall of Fame contributor.

The latest induction into the Hall of Fame recognizes West’s work as a team executive, including general manager stints with the Lakers and Grizzlies, as well as time spent as a consultant for the Warriors and Clippers. West won eight championships in those roles, per ESPN, and won Executive of the Year awards in 1995 and 2004.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

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Bucks Notes: Giannis, Lillard, Defense

March 22nd, 2024 at 7:04pm CST by Rory Maher

Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo played his 65th game of the season on Thursday vs. Brooklyn, which means he’s now eligible for all the major postseason awards, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter).

A two-time MVP and seven-time All-NBA member, Antetokounmpo has an excellent case for additional hardware in 2023/24. He’s averaging 30.7 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 6.4 APG, 1.2 SPG and 1.0 BPG in 35.0 MPG. 6.4 assists per game represents a career-high, and he’s also shooting a career-best 61.4% from the field.

Here’s more on the Bucks:

  • Antetokounmpo had missed the previous two games with a hamstring issue. He discussed the injury following Thursday’s victory, according to Eurohoops. “My goal was to play 82, but when the goal falls apart, you gotta fall back to the second one,” Antetokounmpo said. “There’s a bigger goal here to capture, and you have to think about the bigger picture. I could play through the pain, but it’s not smart in the long run.”
  • Damian Lillard has never been known for his defense, but he made some key plays on that end in crunch time last night, writes Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “I think, in my career, I haven’t been known as a defender, but down the stretch of games, I’ve always been able to have a moment or do what I needed to do at the end of a game defensively,” Lillard said. “And it’s not always going to result in a steal. … But tonight, it just happened to be steals. And when you’re on a team of this caliber, I think is important for everybody to just do whatever you got to do for us to win, because we don’t have anything else to play for other than to win. So, I think it’s going to happen in a lot of different ways. And tonight, that’s just how it happened.”
  • Head coach Doc Rivers discussed the team’s recent “slippage” defensively prior to Thursday’s game, as Nehm relays (via Twitter). Rivers noted that while being without Antetokounmpo obviously played a factor, the team’s guards also need to do a better job navigating screens, as too many perimeter players have been getting into the paint with little resistance.
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Central Notes: Metu, Boeheim, Giannis, Jackson, White

March 21st, 2024 at 10:57am CST by Dana Gauruder

Chimezie Metu, who was signed by the Pistons to a 10-day contract on Wednesday, appeared in their game against Indiana. Two-way guard Buddy Boeheim also made his season debut, becoming the 30th player the Pistons have used this season.

That ties the 2020/21 Rockets for the most players used in one season in league history, Mike Curtis of The Detroit News notes. “It’s definitely different,” Pistons guard Cade Cunningham said. “I just see it as an opportunity to grow as a player, as a leader, as a guard. Making sure we’re organized is a guard’s job, so I find it as an opportunity to get better. When we have all these new guys come in, I try to catch them up to speed to make it easier on them on the court.”

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo missed Wednesday’s showdown with Boston due to hamstring tightness. Coach Doc Rivers said it wasn’t a tough decision, Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets. “He’s feeling good, not great,” Rivers said. “Those things are something you don’t take a chance on, especially now, so it wasn’t very hard.”
  • Pacers forward Isaiah Jackson played 28 minutes at Detroit on Wednesday in his home state, one of his longest stints this season. Jackson was grateful to coach Rick Carlisle for giving him the opportunity for extended playing time with friends and family in the stands, according to Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star. “It means everything,” Jackson said. “I talked to him after the game. It’s something I feel like a lot of coaches don’t really do. I think it just shows the care that Rick has for us, everybody in general not just tonight. It means a lot to me and it means a lot to my family, too.”
  • Bulls guard Coby White practiced on Wednesday and is expected to play on Thursday against Houston. White said there was a silver lining to his absence, which was due to a hip strain. “It was good for me,” he told K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. “Obviously, I don’t want to miss games. But since it did happen and I was hurt, I wanted to take advantage of this time I had off and recover mentally, physically, emotionally spiritually. To me, I just tried to turn it into a positive.”
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