Bucks Zone

Giannis Antetokounmpo shrugged off a shoulder injury to help the Bucks edge Kings: "I just want to be available for my team"

Wearing a sleeve to cover his right shoulder, Giannis persevered for a huge triple-double versus the Kings.
Matthew Dugandzic|
© Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Throughout his illustrious career, Giannis Antetokounmpo has prided himself as a basketball warrior.

Regardless of the physical ailment that he's been enduring, the Greek superstar will still try to will himself in any way he can to be available for the Milwaukee Bucks. And on Sunday night, a right shoulder contusion didn't prevent him from powering his squad past the Sacramento Kings in an overtime thriller at home.

Wearing a sleeve on his right shoulder to curb any complication, Giannis posted a huge triple-double of 27 points, ten boards and ten assists while shooting 9-of-16 from the field. Considering that the high-scoring Kings brought them to the brink of the competitive ball game, the Bucks can only be relieved that Antetokounmpo’s strong performance was there to lead them over.

Proud to maintain availability to help the team win

Giannis only missed a single game thus far this season. Back on Nov. 15 against the Toronto Raptors, he was shelved by Milwaukee due to a nagging right calf strain.

But this time around, he didn't allow any injury to restrict him as he aims to play as much as he can in 2023-24.

"I just want to play games," he said. "I just played a lot of games. What is this Game 40? I've only missed one game, which I'm very proud of. I just want to be available for my team because I had an offseason where I wasn't really playing basketball; I wasn't able to participate with the (Greek) national team or practice, so basically, this is my practice.”

Continue to persevere for the victory

Giannis was a late addition and got marked as questionable on the team's injury report because of his shoulder issue. But as he went through the pre-game warmups well, he got cleared up to play in the Bucks' home contest.

As he and Milwaukee got a two-day break before hitting the road for a three-game trip, Antetokounmpo views the upcoming rest as a necessity to recover his shoulder.

"As much as I can be available for the team and available for myself being out there, I try to work through habits with the team and movements and all that. I want to be able to do this this year," Giannis said.

“Sometimes, you're going to be banged up. Going to play a lot of games banged up, play a lot of minutes [banged up], but you fight through it. Whatever way to get a win. I think we have another run in two days. Hopefully, we can be ready for that.”

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Matthew Dugandzic
MATTHEW DUGANDZIC

Matthew finished his bachelor's degree in Economics (Management) at the University of Split and got his master's degree in the same field at the University of Zadar. Whether it is playing the game as an undersized 6'3'' power forward or simply watching it, Matthew can't get enough of it. After all, he has been an avid NBA fan since the 2000s. But don't get him wrong, as Matthew still loves the old-school NBA and is a true student of the game. From on-court moments to off-court stuff, whether it's about the stars of modern-day basketball or legends of the game, Matthew covers every category of the NBA world and basketball in general, as long as it makes for an engaging and exciting story.