In the Eastern Conference part of the bracket, the Pacers beat the favored Boston Celtics to set up a clash against the Bucks, who easily handled the New York Knicks in the quarterfinals.

The Western Conference semifinals game will see the Pelicans face the Lakers. The Pelicans beat the Sacramento Kings, while the Lakers overcame the Phoenix Suns in a thrilling contest.

The semifinal matches will be played at Las Vegas ‘Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on December 7. The Pacers and the Bucks play their game at 5:00 PM ET, and the Pelicans meet the Lakers at 9:00 PM ET. The championship game will also take place two days later, also in Las Vegas.

The winner of the NBA In-Season Tournament will get to lift the NBA Cup trophy. Also, every player on the team’s roster will receive a $500,000 check.

Out of the four teams in the semifinals, the Bucks own the best record at 15-6 and have won eight of their last 10 games. The Lakers are 13-9, enough for the fourth spot on the Western Conference standings. The Pacers are 11-8, while the Pelicans own a 12-10 record.

The post NBA In-Season Tournament Semifinals to Feature Pacers vs. Bucs, Pelicans vs. Lakers appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Antetokounmpo said he won’t sign a contract extension with the Bucks this summer, despite being eligible to get one, as it “numbers-wise it doesn’t make sense.” The Bucs could offer Antetokounmpo a three-year, $173 million extension, in late September, but he can get an even more lucrative deal if he waits until next summer.

Still, even if the numbers sound right next summer, Antetokounmpo isn’t guaranteeing he’ll ink the deal.

“Next summer it would make more sense for both parties. Even then, I don’t know,” Antetokounmpo said. “I would not be the best version of myself if I don’t know that everybody’s on the same page, everybody’s going for a championship, everybody’s going to sacrifice time away from their family like I do. And if I don’t feel that, I’m not signing.”

Antetokounmpo and the Bucks won an NBA title in 2021, but it wasn’t the start of the dominant run that many believed it would be. Milwaukee only got to the second round the next year and then was eliminated by the No. 8-seeded Miami Heat in the first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

After a disappointing two campaigns, the Bucks decided to fire head coach Mike Budenholzer and replace him with Toronto Raptors’ assistant Adrian Griffin.

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Doesn’t Know If He’ll Sign an Extension with the Bucks appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Bucks’ new head coach Adrian Griffin confirmed the news about Antetokounmpo’s procedure in a chat with reporters on Wednesday.

“He had a routine surgery on his left knee, and it went great,” said Griffin. “Everything went as planned, and we expect him back and ready to go in training camp.”

Antetokounmpo reportedly started feeling discomfort in his left knee early in the offseason and had some tests done. The 28-year-old and the team ended up deciding that the surgery is the best available option.

 Antetokounmpo dealt with left knee issues during the season as well, missing a number of games with knee soreness. He ended up playing 63 games in 2022-23, averaging career-high 31.1 points to go with 11.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists.

While the surgery isn’t expected to have an impact on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s availability for the Bucks, it represents a big blow for the Greece national basketball team. Antetokounmpo was expected to lead the team at the upcoming FIBA World Cup, but his status for the tournament is now in question. 

The post Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Had Knee Surgery, Expected to Return for Training Camp appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The news was confirmed to Wojnarowski by Middleton’s agents, Mike Lindeman and Jeff Schwartz.

This development doesn’t mean that Middleton will leave the Bucks, as the team is interested in signing him to a long-term deal. However, it complicated things for Milwaukee, who will now have to compete with other teams to retain the 31-year-old player.

The thing that might work in the Bucks’ favor is that Middleton picked out a bad time to enter the free agency. He struggled to stay healthy in 2022-23, playing only 33 games and averaging 15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists. Middleton also underwent knee surgery at the end of the campaign.

A second-round pick in 2012 by the Detroit Pistons, Khris Middleton was traded to the Bucks before his sophomore season and developed into an All-Star player. He emerged as a perfect complementary piece alongside the franchise star Giannis Antetokounmpo and helped Milwaukee win an NBA title in 2021.

Middleton, who has three All-Star nods in the past five seasons, has averaged 17.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists since entering the NBA.

The post Bucks’ All-Star Khris Middleton Declines $40 Million Player Option appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Middleton had a “minor arthroscopic procedure,” which addressed a lingering knee issue that bothered him throughout the season. The 31-year-old player is expected to make a full recovery and will be able to resume basketball activities at some point in July.

Middleton had a challenging 2022-23 campaign that saw him play only 33 games as he struggled with a series of issues. He first missed 20 games to start the season due to wrist surgery in the offseason and then missed additional time due to an ankle sprain, blisters, and knee soreness.

Expectedly, Middleton struggled to find his form, being in and out of the lineup, and finished the regular season averaging 15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists. This was statistically his worst season since 2016-17.

Middleton managed to bounce back in the playoffs, putting up 23.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 6.2 assists on average in the series against the Miami Heat. However, Milwaukee played poorly as a team and was ousted in five games despite being considered favorites to make this year’s NBA Finals.

The post Bucks’ All-Star Khris Middleton Had a Knee Surgery Shortly After the Playoffs appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Jimmy Butler proved to be a standout player on the night, scoring 42 points to secure a 128-126 overtime win for Miami in Game 5 of the first-round series. This comes after the small forward scored a colossal 56 points in Game 4.

Miami proved to be on the back foot for much of the game, and while the team managed to control more of the ball than it did in Game 4, the team had to claw their way back from a 22-6 deficit in the fourth quarter.

The Heat is set to face the New York Knicks in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Game 1 takes place on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

The post Miami Heat Sends Milwaukee Bucks Crashing Out of NBA Playoffs appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer stated following the loss that Antetokounmpo underwent an X-ray that shed light on the nature of his injury.

With 1:46 remaining in the first quarter, the Bucks star played fell to the floor hard after being charged by Heat forward Kevin Love. Following a second foul, Antetokounmpo checked out of the game, heading to the locker room and returning with tape around his lower back.

Antetokounmpo returned to play in the second quarter, visibly appearing to struggle due to his back injury. Once Milwaukee took a delay of game violation at the 8:33 mark in the quarter, Antetokounmpo checked out of the game for good.

“He just wasn’t moving [well],” Budenholzer said. “Didn’t look comfortable, confident. It felt like the right thing. We have to wait and see what the doctors say, most importantly, what Giannis says.”

Budenholzer added that the team would have to wait and see how the star man wakes up on Monday before deciding how to proceed.

The post Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Exits Heat Game After Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Haslam will buy the piece of the Bucks from Avenue Capital Group CEO Marc Lasry, who owns around 25 percent of the franchise. The reported price is $875 million, bringing the Bucks’ valuation to $3.5 billion. Co-owners Wesley Edens and James Dinan are expected to retain their share of the team.

If the numbers are true, then the Bucks become the NBA team with the second-highest valuation. They only trail the Phoenix Suns, who were acquired by United Wholesale Mortgage CEO Mat Ishbia at a valuation of $4 billion.

Despite selling the Bucks, Lasry intends to remain involved in sports. He is reportedly interested in investing in another professional team, either as a controlling owner or as a minority stakeholder.

Lasry and Edens purchased the Milwaukee Bucks in 2014 for $550 million while also contributing $100 million for the construction of a new arena. Since then, the Bucks have been one of the league’s best and most consistent teams. They only missed the playoffs once while making the East Conference Finals two times and winning an NBA title in 2020-21.

The post Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam Buys a Percentage Stake in NBA’s Bucks appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Milwaukee remains unsure as to how the two-time NBA MVP actually incurred the injury. After working the post late in the first quarter, Antetokounmpo passed the ball before signaling to the bench to come off the court. With Mike Budenholzer calling a rare mid-possession timeout, Antetokounmpo headed straight for the locker room.

“He was basically asking out,” Budenholzer stated. “Fortunately we had the ball. I don’t think we know exactly when he knocked knees.” Prior to clocking out of the game, Antetokounmpo scored four points while racking up four rebounds and four assists.

Despite Antetokounmpo’s absence, the Bucks held on to defeat the Miami Heat, thereby extending their winning streak to 13 games.

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Exits With Knee Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Following his injury, Antetokounmpo seemed to be an injury doubt for the NBA All-Star game on Sunday night, during which he was set to be captain of the Eastern Conference team. He appeared in 20 seconds of his team’s 184-175 victory against Team LeBron before going off with the same injury.

Antetokounmpo was subsequently replaced by Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo before Bucks teammate Jrue Holiday came on during the second half of the contest.

“Taking it day by day, try to get healthy,” Antetokounmpo commented following his exit from the All-Star game. “You know, obviously I had the incident three days ago. I don’t think it’s smart in any way to … play a lot of minutes in the All-Star Game.”

After starting the All-Star game, Antetokounmpo caught the ball on the baseline, netted a basket, and committed an intentional foul to check himself out of the game.

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Set to Undergo Further Tests on Wrist appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

In the Eastern Conference part of the bracket, the Pacers beat the favored Boston Celtics to set up a clash against the Bucks, who easily handled the New York Knicks in the quarterfinals.

The Western Conference semifinals game will see the Pelicans face the Lakers. The Pelicans beat the Sacramento Kings, while the Lakers overcame the Phoenix Suns in a thrilling contest.

The semifinal matches will be played at Las Vegas ‘Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on December 7. The Pacers and the Bucks play their game at 5:00 PM ET, and the Pelicans meet the Lakers at 9:00 PM ET. The championship game will also take place two days later, also in Las Vegas.

The winner of the NBA In-Season Tournament will get to lift the NBA Cup trophy. Also, every player on the team’s roster will receive a $500,000 check.

Out of the four teams in the semifinals, the Bucks own the best record at 15-6 and have won eight of their last 10 games. The Lakers are 13-9, enough for the fourth spot on the Western Conference standings. The Pacers are 11-8, while the Pelicans own a 12-10 record.

The post NBA In-Season Tournament Semifinals to Feature Pacers vs. Bucs, Pelicans vs. Lakers appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Antetokounmpo said he won’t sign a contract extension with the Bucks this summer, despite being eligible to get one, as it “numbers-wise it doesn’t make sense.” The Bucs could offer Antetokounmpo a three-year, $173 million extension, in late September, but he can get an even more lucrative deal if he waits until next summer.

Still, even if the numbers sound right next summer, Antetokounmpo isn’t guaranteeing he’ll ink the deal.

“Next summer it would make more sense for both parties. Even then, I don’t know,” Antetokounmpo said. “I would not be the best version of myself if I don’t know that everybody’s on the same page, everybody’s going for a championship, everybody’s going to sacrifice time away from their family like I do. And if I don’t feel that, I’m not signing.”

Antetokounmpo and the Bucks won an NBA title in 2021, but it wasn’t the start of the dominant run that many believed it would be. Milwaukee only got to the second round the next year and then was eliminated by the No. 8-seeded Miami Heat in the first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

After a disappointing two campaigns, the Bucks decided to fire head coach Mike Budenholzer and replace him with Toronto Raptors’ assistant Adrian Griffin.

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Doesn’t Know If He’ll Sign an Extension with the Bucks appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Bucks’ new head coach Adrian Griffin confirmed the news about Antetokounmpo’s procedure in a chat with reporters on Wednesday.

“He had a routine surgery on his left knee, and it went great,” said Griffin. “Everything went as planned, and we expect him back and ready to go in training camp.”

Antetokounmpo reportedly started feeling discomfort in his left knee early in the offseason and had some tests done. The 28-year-old and the team ended up deciding that the surgery is the best available option.

 Antetokounmpo dealt with left knee issues during the season as well, missing a number of games with knee soreness. He ended up playing 63 games in 2022-23, averaging career-high 31.1 points to go with 11.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists.

While the surgery isn’t expected to have an impact on Giannis Antetokounmpo’s availability for the Bucks, it represents a big blow for the Greece national basketball team. Antetokounmpo was expected to lead the team at the upcoming FIBA World Cup, but his status for the tournament is now in question. 

The post Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Had Knee Surgery, Expected to Return for Training Camp appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The news was confirmed to Wojnarowski by Middleton’s agents, Mike Lindeman and Jeff Schwartz.

This development doesn’t mean that Middleton will leave the Bucks, as the team is interested in signing him to a long-term deal. However, it complicated things for Milwaukee, who will now have to compete with other teams to retain the 31-year-old player.

The thing that might work in the Bucks’ favor is that Middleton picked out a bad time to enter the free agency. He struggled to stay healthy in 2022-23, playing only 33 games and averaging 15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists. Middleton also underwent knee surgery at the end of the campaign.

A second-round pick in 2012 by the Detroit Pistons, Khris Middleton was traded to the Bucks before his sophomore season and developed into an All-Star player. He emerged as a perfect complementary piece alongside the franchise star Giannis Antetokounmpo and helped Milwaukee win an NBA title in 2021.

Middleton, who has three All-Star nods in the past five seasons, has averaged 17.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists since entering the NBA.

The post Bucks’ All-Star Khris Middleton Declines $40 Million Player Option appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Middleton had a “minor arthroscopic procedure,” which addressed a lingering knee issue that bothered him throughout the season. The 31-year-old player is expected to make a full recovery and will be able to resume basketball activities at some point in July.

Middleton had a challenging 2022-23 campaign that saw him play only 33 games as he struggled with a series of issues. He first missed 20 games to start the season due to wrist surgery in the offseason and then missed additional time due to an ankle sprain, blisters, and knee soreness.

Expectedly, Middleton struggled to find his form, being in and out of the lineup, and finished the regular season averaging 15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists. This was statistically his worst season since 2016-17.

Middleton managed to bounce back in the playoffs, putting up 23.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 6.2 assists on average in the series against the Miami Heat. However, Milwaukee played poorly as a team and was ousted in five games despite being considered favorites to make this year’s NBA Finals.

The post Bucks’ All-Star Khris Middleton Had a Knee Surgery Shortly After the Playoffs appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Jimmy Butler proved to be a standout player on the night, scoring 42 points to secure a 128-126 overtime win for Miami in Game 5 of the first-round series. This comes after the small forward scored a colossal 56 points in Game 4.

Miami proved to be on the back foot for much of the game, and while the team managed to control more of the ball than it did in Game 4, the team had to claw their way back from a 22-6 deficit in the fourth quarter.

The Heat is set to face the New York Knicks in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Game 1 takes place on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

The post Miami Heat Sends Milwaukee Bucks Crashing Out of NBA Playoffs appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer stated following the loss that Antetokounmpo underwent an X-ray that shed light on the nature of his injury.

With 1:46 remaining in the first quarter, the Bucks star played fell to the floor hard after being charged by Heat forward Kevin Love. Following a second foul, Antetokounmpo checked out of the game, heading to the locker room and returning with tape around his lower back.

Antetokounmpo returned to play in the second quarter, visibly appearing to struggle due to his back injury. Once Milwaukee took a delay of game violation at the 8:33 mark in the quarter, Antetokounmpo checked out of the game for good.

“He just wasn’t moving [well],” Budenholzer said. “Didn’t look comfortable, confident. It felt like the right thing. We have to wait and see what the doctors say, most importantly, what Giannis says.”

Budenholzer added that the team would have to wait and see how the star man wakes up on Monday before deciding how to proceed.

The post Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo Exits Heat Game After Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Haslam will buy the piece of the Bucks from Avenue Capital Group CEO Marc Lasry, who owns around 25 percent of the franchise. The reported price is $875 million, bringing the Bucks’ valuation to $3.5 billion. Co-owners Wesley Edens and James Dinan are expected to retain their share of the team.

If the numbers are true, then the Bucks become the NBA team with the second-highest valuation. They only trail the Phoenix Suns, who were acquired by United Wholesale Mortgage CEO Mat Ishbia at a valuation of $4 billion.

Despite selling the Bucks, Lasry intends to remain involved in sports. He is reportedly interested in investing in another professional team, either as a controlling owner or as a minority stakeholder.

Lasry and Edens purchased the Milwaukee Bucks in 2014 for $550 million while also contributing $100 million for the construction of a new arena. Since then, the Bucks have been one of the league’s best and most consistent teams. They only missed the playoffs once while making the East Conference Finals two times and winning an NBA title in 2020-21.

The post Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam Buys a Percentage Stake in NBA’s Bucks appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Milwaukee remains unsure as to how the two-time NBA MVP actually incurred the injury. After working the post late in the first quarter, Antetokounmpo passed the ball before signaling to the bench to come off the court. With Mike Budenholzer calling a rare mid-possession timeout, Antetokounmpo headed straight for the locker room.

“He was basically asking out,” Budenholzer stated. “Fortunately we had the ball. I don’t think we know exactly when he knocked knees.” Prior to clocking out of the game, Antetokounmpo scored four points while racking up four rebounds and four assists.

Despite Antetokounmpo’s absence, the Bucks held on to defeat the Miami Heat, thereby extending their winning streak to 13 games.

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Exits With Knee Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Following his injury, Antetokounmpo seemed to be an injury doubt for the NBA All-Star game on Sunday night, during which he was set to be captain of the Eastern Conference team. He appeared in 20 seconds of his team’s 184-175 victory against Team LeBron before going off with the same injury.

Antetokounmpo was subsequently replaced by Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo before Bucks teammate Jrue Holiday came on during the second half of the contest.

“Taking it day by day, try to get healthy,” Antetokounmpo commented following his exit from the All-Star game. “You know, obviously I had the incident three days ago. I don’t think it’s smart in any way to … play a lot of minutes in the All-Star Game.”

After starting the All-Star game, Antetokounmpo caught the ball on the baseline, netted a basket, and committed an intentional foul to check himself out of the game.

The post Giannis Antetokounmpo Set to Undergo Further Tests on Wrist appeared first on yoursportspot.com.