Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo addresses his return from a nearly month-long absence after the game on Saturda
To say it's been a disappointing season for the Milwaukee Bucks would be an understatement, but Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return from a nearly month-long absence provided some much-needed reprieve for the team on Saturday. Antetokounmpo tallied 29 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including a highlight reel windmill slam, in addition to grabbing eight rebounds.
Following the game, Antetokounmpo admitted that the recovery process for his calf injury took longer than it would have if he were younger. He also stressed the importance of checking all the boxes when rehabbing from that style of injury as opposed to rushing a comeback and risking an even worse injury like an Achilles tear.
“When you have a soft tissue injury, you have to be extremely careful.” Antetokounmpo said. “You can't skip any steps. In the past, when I was younger, I think the recovery process for me was way faster. But now, you’ve got to be patient with everything that the medical staff has, the protocol and the program that they have for me. I think I followed everything step by step.
Solving The Puzzle
Giannis also admitted that he probably would have attempted to make a more immediate statement in the game’s early possessions if he were still in his early 20s, but nowadays he has to be craftier about how he gets the ball in the basket.
“I'm trying to work myself back to the game,” Antetokounmpo said. “And that's what I did. Obviously, I think if I was 22 years old. I would like to get the ball in the first play and make a play. But now it's a puzzle. You just got to keep on adding a piece at a time.
“The first piece was for me to be available and just, you know, get my hands dirty a little bit for the team. And now we have 50 more games ahead of us. Hopefully, I can keep on adding pieces to that puzzle. It felt good.”
The hope for the Bucks is that an extended run with Antetokounmpo will help get their record back above .500 and give them a push in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Remember, Antetokounmpo also missed a handful of games before the calf injury with a separate groin injury.
The Bucks are back in action on Monday against the Charlotte Hornets, which will be the culmination of a five-game road trip that has seen Milwaukee split the first four games.