The No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks are two losses away from their season being over. The Bucks dropped Game 1 of their first round series to the Miami Heat to open the 2023 NBA Playoffs after a back injury knocked out superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo in the first half. Antetokounmpo did not return as the Heat ran away with a 130-117 victory to give Miami a 1-0 lead in the series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo injury: Bucks star returns in Game 4 with Milwaukee down 2-1
Here’s the latest on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s injury against the Miami Heat in the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Antetokounmpo missed Game 2, but the Bucks won anyway. Antetokounmpo missed Game 3, and Miami won to take a 2-1 series lead. With a pivotal Game 4 looming, Antetokounmpo is set to return to the lineup:
Here’s Giannis on the floor warming up:
Antetokounmpo left Game 1 of the Milwaukee Bucks’ first round series with the Miami Heat in the first quarter after falling on his back. Antetokounmpo was attacking the rim on the play when Miami’s Kevin Love slid over and tried to take a charge on him. Antetokounmpo went back to the locker room, got his back wrapped, then re-entered the game in the second quarter for about a minute before being pulled.
The Bucks ruled him out for Game 1 with a lower back contusion, and the Heat took a double-digit lead into halftime. The Heat beat the Bucks in Game 1, 130-117, to take the first game of the series. Here’s the play Antetokounmpo was injured on:
Here’s the official report that Giannis is out for the rest of Game 1:
Antetokounmpo was injured on a very similar play to one that caused Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant to exit Game 1 of his team’s first round series vs. the Lakers on Sunday. Morant’s status is in jeopardy for Game 2 after injuring his wrist on a play when Anthony Davis slid in late to draw a charge. He reportedly couldn’t even do simple tasks with his wrist after the game even though the initial X-rays were negative. The Lakers went on to win Game 1 with Morant out.
The Bucks are the favorite entering the 2023 NBA Playoffs, but they obviously need Antetokounmpo healthy.
We’ll update this story as it develops.
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