Giannis reaches milestone mark for injury recovery

Giannis Antetokounmpo is indisputably one of the greatest basketball players on the planet, and he showed off a little medical prowess following his most recent injury.

After being injured in the closing stages of a disappointing loss to the Denver Nuggets on Jan. 23, all that was missing was a white coat as Antetokounmpo self-diagnosed his strain and deemed himself out 4-to-6 weeks. An MRI confirmed he was correct, with Doc Rivers saying “he did a very good job.”

Despite his nickname, Rivers isn’t a doctor either, but what he said on Jan. 26 was that an “MRI has revealed exactly what we thought. There’s no timetable. Calf strain, and really no timetable for return.”

Doc on Giannis’ injury:

“He did a very good job. MRI has revealed exactly what we thought. There’s no timetable. Calf strain, and really no timetable for return. Hopefully, like it was before, sooner, but there’s no timetable.” pic.twitter.com/pnkCQoKnLr
— Bucks Lead (@BucksLead) January 26, 2026

On Wednesday, Antetokounmpo was able to do some work with the Bucks in New Orleans as the team reconvened for the first time following the All-Star break. However, he didn’t do any 5-on-5 work, so it wasn’t surprising to see him ruled out for Friday’s contest and it’s unlikely that he’ll be in the mix on Sunday when the Bucks open a homestand against the Toronto Raptors that’s part of a lengthy extended run at Fiserv Forum.

Although Feb. 20 marked four weeks since Antetokounmpo suffered his injury and he told reporters at All-Star media availability that his calf strain felt 100 percent, it remains to be seen when he’s cleared to get back to action. He’ll almost certainly face another minutes restriction since Rivers was typically limiting the two-time MVP to no more than 30 minutes even before he reinjured himself.

Antetokounmpo returned from his first calf strain that cost him eight games on Dec. 27 and played more than the 32:10 he participated in against the Nuggets only once in the 13 contests he got into before being hurt again. Even with the Bucks fighting an uphill battle to get into the play-in, they’ll be responsible with the workload they hand the two-time MVP, so don’t expect him to play in both legs of the five back-to-backs remaining on the schedule.

It’s an upset to some that the “Greek Freak” remains on Milwaukee’s roster given all the noise regarding his desire to play for a winner this season, but stopped short of issuing a formal trade demand and wasn’t moved at the deadline. That means his exit in the 102-100 loss to the Nuggets won’t end up being his final appearance for the Bucks, and the next one appears close.

In a perfect world, Antetokounmpo will return to the lineup within the next few weeks, remain healthy and play their way into a first-round playoff series as the No. 7 or No. 8 seed. If additions like Cam Thomas and Ousmane Dieng help boost the roster, it will be easier to convince the face of the franchise that he doesn’t have to go elsewhere in order to try and compete for a second championship.

Milwaukee entered Friday’s game at New Orleans even in the loss column with the Atlanta Hawks and Charlotte Hornets, 1.5 games back of the No. 10 seed. After facing the Pelicans, nine of the Bucks’ next 10 games will be played at home, and the expectation is Antetokounmpo will return to aid the play-in push at some point during that stretch.