Rivers says Giannis ‘close,’ will play when healthy

Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers reiterated on Friday that the team has no plans to shut superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo down for the rest of the season and said the two-time MVP is expected to return when he heals from a strained right calf.

«He’s going to play when he’s healthy,» Rivers said before Friday’s 105-99 win over the Pacers. «We just got to make sure he’s healthy. He’s getting close. He’s working out. He looks good. So I would say hopefully sooner than later.»

In Rivers’ first comments following the NBA’s trade deadline on Thursday, he said he could see the relief throughout the rest of the team’s roster now that the NBA’s trade deadline has passed, especially with Antetokounmpo remaining in Milwaukee after weeks of uncertainty.

«You can just see the way everybody was skipping around the gym today,» Rivers said with a laugh.

The Bucks won their third straight game Friday but still remained in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, trailing the 10th-place Charlotte Hornets by two games for the final play-in spot. Sitting Antetokounmpo for the rest of the season could aid the team’s lottery odds in the 2026 draft.

The Bucks are 6-14 this season with Antetokounmpo sidelined and 15-15 when he does play. He has been limited to 30 games this season because of injuries but is still putting up some of the best numbers of his career. He is averaging 30 points, 10 rebounds and 5.6 assists on 65% shooting and was named an All-Star for the 10th consecutive season.

Antetokounmpo predicted after his calf strain on Jan. 23 that he would be sidelined for about four to six weeks. The Bucks did not release a timeline for his return, and Rivers did not provide any clarity on Friday.

However, Antetokounmpo did complete a workout routine on the court Friday, performing shooting drills and post-up moves with the team’s player development staff before finishing with exercises alongside a team trainer. It’s the third consecutive game this week he has taken the court before a game.

Rivers has maintained all season that he has never wavered about whether Antetokounmpo would remain in Milwaukee, but on Friday he compared getting past the deadline to a weight being lifted off the team’s shoulders.

After the deadline passed, Antetokounmpo posted on social media a clip of the 2013 film «The Wolf of Wall Street» along with a message: «Legends don’t chase. They attract.»

«I think it was a relief,» Rivers said. «I thought Giannis’ tweet was like a unifying thing for all the players as well.»