Hours before the Milwaukee Bucks host the Boston Celtics on March 2 at Fiserv Forum, the team upgraded Giannis Antetokounmpo’s physical status for the first time since he reinjured his right calf on Jan. 23.
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The team officially listed Antetokounmpo as questionable to play against the Celtics, which likely means he must go through his full pregame routine without issue. The team typically does not hold a full shootaround the day after playing, and the Bucks returned from a loss in Chicago on March 1.
When Antetokounmpo injured the calf, which was the second time he strained it this season, Antetokounmpo predicted he would be out four to six weeks. March 2 marks the beginning of the sixth week since the injury, and Antetokounmpo has been doing “live” work with coaches and teammates the last two weeks.
Antetokounmpo has missed the last 15 games.
The 31-year-old superstar has been largely unhealthy this season, as he strained a left adductor on Nov. 17 and missed four games from Nov. 20-26. He returned to play four games under a minute restriction and then suffered his first calf strain early on Dec. 3. He then missed eight games from Dec. 5-26 before again returning under a minute restriction.
Antetokounmpo has not been fully healthy since Nov. 15.
In his 12 fully healthy games he played this season from Oct. 22-Nov. 15, Antetokounmpo shot 63% from the field and averaged 32.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 1.3 blocks per game.
In the 18 games he played under a minute restriction, or left early with injury, Antetokounmpo shot 65.9% while averaging 24.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 0.4 blocks in just about 26 minutes per game.
Milwaukee went 15-15 when Antetokounmpo played any number of minutes and are 11-18 without him.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Bucks upgrade the status of Giannis Antetokounmpo