The NBA trade deadline has potentially taken an unexpected twist.
Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo exited Saturday’s (AEDT) 102-100 loss to the Nuggets with injury and told reporters after the game that he has a right calf or soleus strain.
He said he expects to miss four to six weeks and will undergo an MRI exam, adding that he believes that testing will show he “popped something” in his calf.
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Head coach Doc Rivers said after the game that he thought Antetokounmpo was “favouring” his calf for a good chunk of the second half.
“I didn’t like what my eyes were seeing, personally,” Rivers said, according to CBS Sports.
“Giannis was defiant about staying in. On that one play, you could see him trying to run down the floor, I had had enough. I didn’t ask, just took him out. He actually wanted to go back in. That was a no for me.
“He knew he should have been out. There was no disagreement or anything like that.”
Antetokounmpo didn’t exit until 34.2 seconds left in the game with the Bucks down five. As for what’s next, Rivers wasn’t sure but he expressed concerned.
“I don’t know yet, honestly. He was in the med room. I don’t think it looks great, personally. This calf keeps coming up and it’s concerning. I’m not a doctor, but I’m smart enough to know that his calf keeps bothering him and there’s something that is there and it keeps happening, and that’s troublesome for all of us.”
Antetokounmpo had 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists before exiting.
The nine-time All-Star has been part of all sorts of trade buzz this season, but with an injury that could sideline him into March, this could throw a wrench into any potential deal.
It comes amid reports linking nine-time All-Star Antetokounmpo to the Golden State Warriors, while ESPN reporter Brian Windhorst said an Antetokounmpo trade before the February 6 trade deadline (AEDT) wais “more likely by the hour”.
“Nobody wants to be the bad guy but everybody wants the best terms,” Windhorst said on ESPN.
“Giannis won a championship and had had 12 amazing years in Milwaukee, he doesn’t want to hurt those fans. He wants to potentially be able to live in Milwaukee for the rest of his life when he retires.
“He doesn’t want to (request a trade). But clearly, he’s a smart guy. He understands the league. He can’t look at this situation and believe it’s tenable.
“He wants to be the guy the fans still come to arena with and cheer for him and love him.”
— This article initially appeared on the New York Post and was republished with permission
The Indiana Pacers have toppled the league-leading Oklahoma City Thunder 117-114, withstanding a 47-point performance from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to win an NBA Finals rematch.
The Pacers, back in Oklahoma City for the first time since falling in game seven of last season’s championship series, took a 39-28 first-quarter lead then fended off every Thunder charge.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 points in the fourth quarter as the Thunder, trailing by 12 with 4:44 remaining, twice cut the deficit to one.
The reigning Most Valuable Player drained a pair of free-throws to pull the Thunder within 115-114 with 7.8 seconds left, but Jarace Walker responded with two free-throws to seal it for Indiana.
Walker said the win “most definitely” meant a bit more to the Pacers, who have sunk to worst record in the league (11-35) with Tyrese Haliburton sidelined this season with the torn Achilles tendon suffered in the game seven defeat.
“Going out how we did last year, it was definitely circled on the calendar and it was a great team win,” Walker said.
Andrew Nembhard scored 27 points and handed out 11 assists for Indiana. Walker added 26 points and Pascal Siakam chipped in 21.
Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said the Thunder’s slow start was too much to overcome.
“I thought we played pretty well despite it not being a great shooting night,” Daigneault said.
“We played well enough to win for 36 minutes and we needed 48. Credit them, they played all 48 and they held us off when we tried to get back in it multiple times.”
In Detroit, Houston star Kevin Durant scored 32 points on 11-of-19 shooting to help the Rockets end the East-leading Pistons’ four-game winning streak.
Tied at half-time, the Rockets out-scored the Pistons 34-20 in the third quarter to seize control, never trailing in the fourth.
Alperen Sengun added 19 points for the Rockets, who were coming off an overtime loss at Philadelphia a day earlier.
Amen Thompson added 15 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for Houston — gaining statistical bragging rights over his twin brother Ausar, who scored 12 points with eight rebounds and three assists for Detroit.
Jalen Duren scored 18 points to lead the Pistons with Cade Cunningham adding 12 points and eight assists in his return from a one-game injury absence.
The Boston Celtics, fuelled by Jaylen Brown’s triple-double of 27 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, edged the Nets 130-126 in double-overtime in Brooklyn.
Payton Pritchard led Boston’s scoring with 32 points and Michael Porter Jr scored 30 to pace the Nets.
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Brooklyn centre Nic Claxton’s tip-in dunk tied it at 104-104 with 1.9 seconds left in regulation.
After five lead changes in the first overtime Boston’s Spanish rookie Hugo Gonzalez drained a three-pointer to tie it again and force the second extra session, in which the Celtics never trailed.
After taking one of the most humiliating beatings in team history, Jordi Fernández challenged his Nets to show more fight — and they did, albeit without victory.
The Nets (12-31) have dropped a dozen of their last 14, the worst a 120-66 on Thursday (AEDT) to the Knicks. It was the second-largest margin of defeat in franchise history, and their lowest scoring output since a 90-65 loss to Miami on March 12, 2005.
“Yeah, it’s about how you respond. Obviously, you don’t like to feel embarrassed. It was a tough feeling,” said Fernández. “But we were out there together and the best thing you can do is [Thursday] watch some film, talk to each other, get some work done this morning, do it again and go out there and respond as a group. … Once again, how you respond is how you should be judged.”
The Phoenix Suns fell 110-103 to the Hawks in Atlanta, a defeat made more painful by the departure of star guard Devin Booker after he rolled his ankle late in the third quarter.
Booker had scored 31 points before exiting with the Suns up 91-84. Onyeka Okngwu scored 25 points for Atlanta and Jalen Johnson added 23 points and 18 rebounds.
— AFP
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