The Milwaukee Bucks did not let Giannis Antetokounmpo’s early exit bother them as they rolled to their most-lopsided victory of the season.
Now they wait to learn whether they might have to continue playing without the two-time MVP.
Antetokounmpo left late in the first quarter with a right knee issue to spoil his rapid recovery from a sprained wrist, but the Bucks still trounced the Miami Heat 128-99 for their 13th consecutive triumph.
“I haven’t gotten the full breakdown, but I’m pretty sure either on a drive or on a screen or something like that, he knocked knees with somebody and just wasn’t able to return,” Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said after the game.
Antetokounmpo was in the starting line-up just four days after heading to New York to have his right wrist examined.
“Sometimes you have to stop him from himself, being able to calm down and maybe even not play a couple of games, knowing that we’re No.2 (in the East), knowing that we’re all right,” Jrue Holiday, who had 24 points, said.
“I know he doesn’t like it. He tries to play every single game, which I completely understand. I feel like I’m the same way.”
Antetokounmpo was on the floor late in the first quarter when the two-time MVP passed the ball and immediately motioned to the bench as the Bucks called a timeout to enable him to head to the locker room.
He had four points, four rebounds and four assists in just six minutes.
The Bucks still had no trouble extending the longest winning streak in the NBA this season, pulling ahead for good just four minutes into the game.
Elsewhere, Julius Randle equalled a career high with 46 points as the New York Knicks rallied from a 19-point deficit to beat the Washington Wizards 115-109.
LaMelo Ball recorded a double-double of a game-high 32 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Charlotte Hornets to a 121-113 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In their first game under interim coach Joe Prunty, Atlanta posted a 136-119 win over Cleveland as Trae Young scored 34 points.
The Chicago Bulls thumped the Brooklyn Nets 131-87 to snap a six-game losing streak.
Ben Simmons sat out the game with left-knee soreness, coach Jacque Vaughn saying the team decided to put the Australian guard “in a strengthening phase” to avoid a recurrence.
Klay Thompson scored 42 points and matched his season high with 12 3-pointers, leading the undermanned Golden State Warriors past the Houston Rockets 116-101.
The Sacramento Kings edged an overtime thriller 176-175 against the Clippers, while the Phoenix Suns also won.
Source: AP
