Giannis Antetokounmpo is expected to play tonight in the Bucks’ home game against the Celtics, ESPN’s Shams Charania tweets.
Antetokounmpo hasn’t suited up since Jan. 23 due to a right calf strain. He has missed 15 games due to his latest injury but the Bucks have managed to hang around the fringes of the play-in tournament race, going 8-7 during that stretch.
He’s officially listed as questionable to play tonight by the Bucks, Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets.
Milwaukee currently trails the seventh- and eighth-place teams in the Eastern Conference, Orlando and Miami, by five games. Atlanta has a 3 1/2-game lead over the Bucks, while 10th-place Charlotte has a three-game cushion.
Antetokounmpo also missed three weeks of action in December. He’s averaging 28 points, 10 rebounds and 5.6 assists while appearing in 30 games. By sitting out 29 games, Antetokounmpo is ineligible for postseason awards.
The Bucks theoretically could have improved their chances of making the lottery by having their star sit out the rest of the season but that wasn’t on their agenda. How they finish up could determine their course of action regarding plans to continue to build around Antetokounmpo or whether he’ll be on the trading block this summer. He’s signed through the 2027/28 season but holds a $62.8MM option on the final year of that extension.