Bucks Zone

"I felt in a good place" - Giannis Antetokounmpo battles hamstring issues to lead the Bucks' bounce-back win over 76ers

The Greek Freak shrugged off his new injury to land the Bucks back in the win column.

Matthew Dugandzic

© Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
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In the wake of the Milwaukee Bucks' strong urgency to get themselves back on track after their recent tough road trip, Giannis Antetokounmpo has once again willed his way to play despite a new injury.

Approaching their Thursday home matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, Giannis was listed as probable to play because of a left hamstring soreness that he sustained last week against the L.A. Clippers. But amid this uncertainty about his availability, the Greek Freak was cleared to play after coming out well in his pregame workout.

Giannis came out strong despite a passive start

Interestingly, after leaving his first exposure at the 5:55 mark of the first quarter against the 76ers, Giannis proceeded to ride a stationary bike. Before doing his leg exercise, he logged nearly 7 minutes of play and was seemingly passive with just 2 points on 1-of-2 shooting.

He ended the game with a strong 32-point, 11-rebound performance and shot 9-of-12 from the field for 37 minutes to lead Milwaukee's 114-105 victory.

“You have to stay warm,” he said about his bike exercise. “If you don’t and you get cold, now you gotta warm up again from the beginning, and it’s hard. … . The bike was good but the bike, I didn’t like. I didn’t like the way I felt when I started walking on the floor when I got subbed in, but I had my physios and people taking care of, give me some heat pads, and tried to stay warm as much as possible.”

Nothing to worry about

Hamstring soreness is the newest injury Giannis has endured this season, following both right knee tendinitis and left Achilles tendinitis that kept him out for three games thus far this season. Regardless of the concerns that might have been formed, the Bucks superstar clarified that he is ecstatic and feeling well about his condition.

“I felt in a good place. I think I was 100%? Maybe not, but I felt in a good place. I was able to compete, I was able to control myself, so I’m happy that I did (play).”

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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.