The Milwaukee Bucks suffered a critical loss on Monday, as star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo exited the team’s defeat in Cleveland with a left groin injury. Ahead of the team’s practice on Tuesday, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said that Giannis would likely be out for two weeks.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reports that the forward has been diagnosed with a low-grade strain. Let’s look at how Antetokounmpo’s absence will impact the Bucks’ rotation and fantasy basketball.
Who will move into the Bucks’ starting lineup?
With Kyle Kuzma (24% rostered on Yahoo) already in the starting lineup, filling that role the last four games, the Bucks will need to turn elsewhere to fill the void. One possibility is that Gary Trent Jr. (7%) returns to the lineup after coming off the bench the last three games. As a starter, he’s averaging 10.0 points, 1.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 2.3 3-pointers in 28.1 minutes, shooting 37.7% from the field and 70.6% from the foul line. Trent has primarily been a points and 3-pointers option, offering limited value in the other categories.
Another option, if Milwaukee were to go big, would be veteran forward/center Bobby Portis (25%). However, like Trent, his fantasy production has been underwhelming this season. Averaging 9.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.3 3-pointers in 20.9 minutes. This is the least productive that Portis has been since his second season in the NBA (2016-17). However, according to Cleaning the Glass, Portis and starting center Myles Turner have only shared the court for 120 possessions this season. Given that number, Portis’ chances of starting may be slim.
Even if he comes off the bench, there will be opportunities for Portis to provide greater value, but fantasy managers can’t assume that he’ll come through.
How does Giannis’ absence impact the entire rotation?
The gravity that Antetokounmpo has offensively opens things up for the entire team, even with his lack of a reliable perimeter shot. Ryan Rollins (51%) has emerged as a fantasy standout this season, sitting just outside the top-50 in 9-cat, per-game value. Turner (97%), one of the league’s better pick-and-pop big men, will also be impacted by Antetokounmpo’s absence. AJ Green (7%), who has provided solid 3-point value, could be in a challenging spot in terms of delivering consistent production while the Bucks await Giannis’ return.
Turner and Rollins are the safest bets to benefit from Giannis’ absence, with the latter being the only appealing option who’s still available in 12-team leagues. Outside of those two, fantasy managers may be best served taking a patient approach to see how Rivers handles the rotation, or simply looking to other teams to help account for Antetokounmpo’s absence.
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