NBA Finals: Bucks Upgrade Giannis Antetokounmpo's Injury Status

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo was unlikely to play in Game 1 of the NBA Finals as of Monday night. Once the Bucks released their first injury report for the championship series against the Phoenix Suns, the former MVP was listed as doubtful after missing the last two games.

Now, his status has changed. According to ESPN's Malika Andrews, Antetokounmpo has been upgraded to questionable for Game 1 against the Suns on Tuesday night.

That's great news for the Bucks, who had to rely heavily on some of the team's other standouts, such as Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton as of late.

While Antetokounmpo's supporting cast did a job well done in Games 5 and 6 during the Eastern Conference Finals series against the Atlanta Hawks, the Bucks are going to need all of the star power they can get against the Western Conference Champions, the Phoenix Suns.

Antetokounmpo's knee injury occurred during the Bucks' Game 4 matchup against Atlanta. After going down, the former MVP was helped up off the floor and walked gingerly back to the locker room with assistance.

Although he returned to the bench later on in the game, the Bucks didn't hesitate to rule him out for the evening as they trailed the Hawks. The initial diagnosis without an MRI scan was a hyperextended knee.

Hoping the initial diagnosis would remain the same, the Bucks were happy to hear they got their wish as Antetokounmpo's MRI came back negative as didn't suffer any structural damage. At this point, the big man is progressing well and pushing hard to play in Game 1, but his status still remains unclear hours before tip-off.