Giannis Antetokounmpo expected to return from calf injury Saturday against Bulls: sources
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Milwaukee Bucks expect star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo to return from a right calf injury and play on the road against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night, league and team sources confirmed. Athletics.
Antetokounmpo’s likely return, which was first noted by Memphis Grizzlies television play-by-play announcer Pete Pranica early in FanDuel Sports Network’s broadcast of Friday’s game between Memphis and Milwaukee, will come after an eight-game absence. However, to play against the Bulls, Antetokounmpo will still have to pass pregame testing required by the Bucks’ practice squad to be cleared to play.
Antetokounmpo was injured early in the first quarter of the Bucks’ game against the Detroit Pistons on December 3. After pulling off a shocking win over Detroit without Antetokounmpo, the Bucks (12-19) have won just two of the eight games he missed.
During an interview with reporters on December 18, Antetokounmpo revealed that he had been suffering from a right soleus strain. That same left calf injury ended his 2023-24 campaign and kept him out of the Bucks’ first-round loss to the Indiana Pacers in the playoffs.
This season, Antetokounmpo averaged 28.9 points, 10.1 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 29.1 minutes per game, while shooting a career-best 63.9 percent from the field. The Bucks are 10-7 this season in games Antetokounmpo has played and 2-12 in games he has missed.
Antetokounmpo only appeared in 17 of the Bucks’ 31 games and was forced to leave two more early due to injuries suffered in the game. Antetokounmpo left the Bucks’ 118-106 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers late in the first half because of a left adductor strain on November 17. He then missed the next four games before returning to action on November 28 against the New York Knicks.
The nine-time All-Star has been preparing to return to the court with the Bucks’ practice squad since suffering his latest injury. He was present at the team’s shootarounds on the road last week. Most recently, he was seen participating in a three-on-three full contact session after the pre-game penalty shootout for Milwaukee’s game against the Pacers on Tuesday.
Giannis Antetokounmpo (right calf strain) is listed as out for tonight’s game against the Pacers, but he played 3-on-3 for 10-15 minutes after today’s shootout in Indianapolis. pic.twitter.com/pODIovqTTL
– Eric Nehm (@eric_nehm) December 23, 2025
Despite his absence on the court, Antetokounmpo has been one of the most prevalent names in trade rumors around the league since an ESPN report suggested that the Bucks’ all-time leading scorer and his representative had approached the team about his future with the franchise.
“I’m still locked in, locked in on my teammates. Most importantly, I’m locked in on getting back healthy,” Antetokounmpo told reporters on Dec. 18 in response to those rumors. “And then I focused on my teammates and how can I help them from the sidelines or encourage them to be able to play and play freely?
“Because at the end of the day, it costs them too, doesn’t it? They play game after game after game. Thank God we had a very good schedule in the last few weeks, but it also costs them: the rumors, the injuries, the defeats, the victories. It’s difficult, isn’t it? As a leader, but especially as a winner, you have to be there for them first.”
While teams around the league continue to hope that Milwaukee will make Antetokounmpo available, the Bucks have expressed a desire to add talent to their roster before this season’s trade deadline, league sources said. Athletics.
