Mere hours after it was reported that he and his agent had been assembly with the Bucks to debate his future with the franchise, which head coach Doc Rivers denied, Milwaukee Bucks star ahead Giannis Antetokounmpo suffered a non-contact lower-body harm throughout the first quarter of Wednesday’s win over the Pistons. He would exit instantly, and given accidents to the likes of Boston’s Jayson Tatum and Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton, one wouldn’t be blamed for fearing the worst.
The Bucks’ official announcement on Wednesday was that Giannis suffered a strained proper calf, and Rivers mentioned after the sport that an Achilles tendon harm had been dominated out after a preliminary MRI. On Thursday, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the calf pressure was anticipated to sideline the star ahead for about two to 4 weeks. Whereas the commerce rumor mill will proceed to churn, fantasy managers want to determine how they will compensate for Antetokounmpo’s absence.
Who will change Antetokounmpo within the beginning lineup?
That is an attention-grabbing query. Primarily based on manufacturing, one would assume that Kyle Kuzma (21 %) is first in line to fill the void, with Bobby Portis (27 %) being one other risk. Nevertheless, it was Jericho Sims (one %) who began the second half of Wednesday’s recreation, and he had his greatest recreation of the season.
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In half-hour, Sims didn’t miss a shot, scoring 15 factors (7-of-7 FGs, 1-of-1 FTs) to associate with 14 rebounds and one help. The double-double was his first for the reason that 2022-23 season as a member of the New York Knicks, so the query can be whether or not he can maintain that manufacturing if allowed to start out. Kuzma and Portis are safer streaming choices with Giannis unavailable, however deep-league managers shouldn’t overlook Sims.
NBA: Memphis Grizzlies at New Orleans Pelicans
Fantasy Basketball Week 7 Damage Report: Stephen Curry, Zion Williamson among the many key absences
Williamson might not be again till Christmas, which is optimistic, whereas Curry is out a minimum of three extra video games.
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Who else is impacted by Antetokounmpo’s absence?
He is the unquestioned point of interest of the Bucks’ offense, and Giannis’ athleticism is impactful defensively as properly. His absence will impression everybody within the rotation. Kevin Porter Jr. (47 %) and Ryan Rollins (57 %) can have added fantasy worth out of necessity as a consequence of their potential to create offense for themselves and their teammates. Whereas these two are off the board in deeper leagues, managers in 12-team codecs will need to make certain Porter and Rollins aren’t sitting on their league’s waiver wire.
One other participant to observe is Myles Turner (97 %), particularly if Rivers decides to maneuver Sims into the beginning lineup moderately than a ahead. Whereas he hasn’t been an elite rebounder, Turner would possible lose out on boards if Sims begins; he grabbed three in 20 minutes in opposition to the Pistons on Wednesday (foul bother was additionally an element). In response to the NBA’s knowledge, the Turner/Sims partnership has produced a internet ranking of minus-17.0 in 42 minutes performed over 9 video games.
Whereas the defensive rebounding was good, with the Bucks grabbing 82.2 % of opponents’ missed photographs, the offensive ranking (97.8) was poor. Whereas we might even see them paired up for longer stretches with Giannis out, it might not be the default lineup used.
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Additional down the listing, AJ Inexperienced (16 %) and Gary Trent Jr. (5 %) can have alternatives to contribute extra, with the previous already within the beginning lineup. How will Antetokounmpo’s absence impression the standard of Inexperienced’s photographs? And might he do sufficient to create a number of extra appears on his personal? He has offered strong late-round worth this season, however a lift to Inexperienced’s offensive manufacturing is clearly not assured.
