Bucks' Khris Middleton diagnosed with sprained MCL, out indefinitely
Milwaukee Bucks forward Khris Middleton has a sprained left MCL and is sidelined indefinitely, the team announced Thursday. An initial exam following the injury in Game 2 of the Bucks' Eastern Conference first-round series against the Bulls identified it as an MCL injury.
The Bucks said Middleton "will receive daily treatment and evaluation."
Middleton will miss the rest of the first-round series against the Bulls, with the Bucks saying the next update on Middleton's status will come in approximately two weeks. It's tied 1-1 with Game 3 scheduled for Friday in Chicago.
Middleton, 30, injured his left knee with 6:49 left in the fourth quarter of a 114-110 loss that evened the series. It appeared he slipped in the paint and head coach Mike Budenholzer said after the game he was told it was an MCL sprain.
Middleton had 29 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds over the two playoffs games. He was 5-of-7 from 3-point range in the first outing, but cooled off in Game 2. He averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game this season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo recognized the severity of the injury afterward.
"You know it's kind of bothering him because he doesn't leave the game if he's not hurting," Antetokounmpo told reporters.
"We've got to focus on ourselves and we have a job to do here. Obviously, Khris is one of the best players on the team. If he's not able to be with us it's going to be a tremendous loss for us, but at the end of the day, we've got guys that hopefully that can step up and we can still do our job and compete and enjoy the game and hopefully it's not something very serious that he can come back and join us very soon."
The 10-year veteran hyperextended his left knee in a Dec. 13 game in Boston and missed three games.
