Giannis Antetokounmpo injury: How long can he be out and when can he return? We look at 2 scenarios
The image of an NBA star writhing in pain on the court is unfortunately quite a common sighting this season and now Giannis Antetokounmpo has joined the list. The Milwaukee Bucks superstar went up for a challenge on an alley-oop attempt from John Collins to Clint Capela and landed awkwardly on the floor. He was immediately diagnosed with left knee hyperextension and was escorted to the locker room.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was grimacing in pain for a very long time on the floor and had to be helped up by his teammates. One positive sign is that he was able to walk back to the locker room by himself and be able to put weight and pressure on his knee.
The Milwaukee Bucks host the Atlanta Hawks for Game 5 at Fiserv Forum and Giannis Antetokounmpo's status is still in doubt.
What are the possibilities concerning Giannis Antetokounmpo's knee injury?
The positive news for Milwaukee fans is that he eventually returned to the bench but wasn't going to play in a blowout loss anyway. He was able to walk on his own feet and although the instant replay made it look worse, it might not be as bad as it looks. The NBA world hopes that Giannis hasn't suffered an ACL tear as he was in the middle of one of his best playoff runs possibly en route to the NBA title.
NBA analyst Nick Wright expressed his sorrow over Giannis' injury, saying,
"This is an emotional gut punch. This is the unfairness of professional sports, Giannis has done everything right, Giannis has been an ironman, Giannis is on the precipice of a career professional defining 3 weeks. ... I just felt so sad for Giannis"
We took a look at two possible scenarios concerning Giannis Antetokounmpo and his knee injury.
Case 1 - Knee Hyperextension/Bone Bruise/Sprain
If the diagnosis remains a knee hyperextension or gets updated to a bone bruise or a sprain, then Milwaukee Bucks fans can take a sigh of relief. The recovery time for any of those injuries is a few weeks. If the Bucks manage to reach the NBA Finals without the two-time MVP, then there is a slight chance we might see the Greek Freak lace-up.
As mentioned earlier, seeing Giannis Antetokounmpo walk on his own and return to the bench is a hugely positive sign.
However, the Milwaukee Bucks have immediate concerns about winning the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks are missing their talisman, Trae Young, as well, which kind of evens off the field. Coach Mike Budenholzer spoke about his team and Giannis' injury, saying,
"It just looked like their legs got tangled up...They both landed awkwardly. That's what I saw live. I haven't seen anything else....We'll see how he is tomorrow...We'll take everything as it comes...We'll evaluate it. We've got a heck of a team, a heck of a roster."
We have seen crazier stuff happen in these 2021 NBA playoffs. The LA Clippers have won without Leonard and the Atlanta Hawks just won without Trae Young. The Milwaukee Bucks are a deep team but winning without Giannis Antetokounmpo does seem far-fetched. The two-time MVP and 2020 DPOY is one of the most consistent leaders in PER (Player Efficiency Rating) in the league and always elevates the Milwaukee Bucks' offense.
Khris Middleton commented on his teammate's injury, saying,
"I heard him yell...I just hope it's not serious...We'll see what happens with Giannis...It would be great if he plays, but if not, we still have a capable team of going out there and winning"
With hyperextension, bone bruises and sprains, Giannis Antetokounmpo's return timeline is expected to be around three to four weeks, should the Milwaukee Bucks progress without him.
Case 2 - ACL tear/sprain
This is the absolute worst-case scenario for the Milwaukee Bucks. Anything related to the ACL is one of the most serious injuries in sports. Warriors' Klay Thompson suffered an ACL tear in the 2019 NBA Finals in July and wasn't healthy enough to play until November 2020. Moreover, ACL injuries often lead to more unwanted injuries when athletes neglect another part of their bodies. Similar to Thompson and John Wall, who subsequently tore their Achilles while rehabbing for his ACL injury.
Giannis Antetokounmpo getting diagnosed with an ACL injury, either a tear or sprain, would immediately rule him out of the postseason. ACL tears usually take a full calendar year to recover and even then teams take extra time off as a precaution. We might not even see Giannis Antetokounmpo next season.
Kendrick Perkins, a 2008 NBA champion with the Celtics and now an NBA analyst on ESPN, went through an ACL tear himself. He appeared on the popular show "The Jump" to speak on Clippers' Kawhi Leonard's injury, saying,
"I don't think Kawhi Leonard comes back this postseason. Anything dealing with the knee, ACL, anything around there...it's just something you can't play with. If I'm Kawhi, I'm going to sit out because coming back, you're not going to be at full strength anyway and you have a chance of possibly hurting yourself even more..."
The exact same sentiment can be used to describe Giannis Antetokounmpo. An ACL injury cannot be messed around with and if he does return, he has a chance of aggravating it. Even if the diagnosis is not an ACL tear, Antetokounmpo shouldn't return to exercise caution or else he'll be putting his entire career in jeopardy.
So to conclude, if the MRI diagnosis is an ACL injury, the Milwaukee Bucks would be going from a potential title to not even seeing Giannis Antetokounmpo next season.
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