Giannis Antetokounmpo is the sun around which the Bucks’ universe revolves. This offseason, familiar faces like Damian Lillard, Middleton, Lopez, and Connaughton drifted away, leaving holes in the orbit. Milwaukee filled in, signing Myles Turner, Kevin Porter Jr., Gary Harris, Cole Anthony, and Amir Coffey, all handpicked to make Giannis’ chase for another championship as smooth as possible, a sequel to his 2021 triumph. But even the brightest sun casts shadows. No matter how many stars you line up around him, there’s one force the Bucks can’t control. That is the injuries.

Per Eric Nehm of The Athletic, the Bucks’ superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, “started grabbing at his groin as soon as he went down on that last attempt at the rim. He hobbled down the floor, committed a quick foul, and immediately walked off the floor and into the locker room.” Near the end of the second quarter, Giannis Antetokounmpo limped off after a missed layup, fouling Cavaliers’ Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley as he made his way to the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse locker room.

During the halftime, Milwaukee delivered more than just a two-point deficit. Giannis entered the night already listed as probable but still managed to play 13 minutes, scoring 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting, grabbing five rebounds, dishing out four assists, and adding a steal. But as the Cavaliers led 59–57, Bucks fans got the bad news: “Status alert: Giannis Antetokounmpo (groin) won’t return Monday.”

With Giannis out, players like Bobby Portis, Amir Coffey, and Gary Trent will need to step up and keep the team on track while their superstar recovers. Giannis already had a nagging left-knee patellar tendinopathy since October but is still putting up huge numbers, averaging 32.6 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 7.3 assists per game, despite missing a few games earlier this season. 

The Bucks depend heavily on Antetokounmpo to carry the team. In their last game against the Cavaliers, he scored a massive 40 points on 14-of-20 shooting, even though Milwaukee still came up short. This season, he has already recorded nine games with 30 or more points in just 12 appearances.

In their most recent matchup against the Lakers, he put up 32 points on 9-of-15 shooting, going 13-of-18 from the free-throw line, while also grabbing 10 rebounds and dishing out five assists. Meanwhile, the supporting cast has been inconsistent, sometimes struggling to match his level of production. 

Kyle Kuzma has shown flashes, lighting up for 29 points in a Charlotte Hornets overtime win, only to sputter in other contests, while Myles Turner has struggled offensively. Meanwhile, Milwaukee’s defense is lurking in the bottom half of the league, leaving the team vulnerable when their star is sidelined.

With Giannis banged up, the Bucks have no choice but to shuffle their rotation and hope the rest of the roster steps up. Every missed shot or defensive mistake helps the Cavaliers, who will try to take advantage of Milwaukee’s weaker supporting players.

Can the Cavaliers’ early struggles hide their true title contender potential?

The Cleveland Cavaliers have started the 2025-26 season strongly, despite some injuries. With Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley leading the way, they’re 9-5, third in the East. ESPN’s Zach Kram and Kevin Pelton called them a “legit title contender,” saying if Darius Garland stays healthy, they could challenge New York for the top spot.

Mitchell himself keeps a grounded perspective: “I think we’ve got to let last year go. This is a whole different season. Everybody around us got better…There’s guys who are hurt. Guys in. Guys out. So many different things. It is natural. Things change. So how do we — as this group — find a way to find our identity?” But consistency has been a problem.

Against the struggling Memphis Grizzlies, the Cavs spent the first three quarters wandering in a haze, leading just twice in the opening 36 minutes for a total of 128 seconds. But come the fourth quarter, Cleveland flipped the switch. Mitchell went on an 18-point tear, Mobley attacked the rim aggressively, and the defense suddenly tightened, limiting Memphis to 16 points while forcing seven turnovers. 

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The Cavs have had a rocky start with injuries to Darius Garland and Max Strus, forcing coach Kenny Atkinson to try eight different starting lineups. He shrugged it off, saying, “It takes time. It’s 14 games in. I wish we were a little bit ahead of that, but we’re not…We’ve just got to keep building.”

Following Giannis Antetokounmpo’s exit, the Cavs cruised to a 118-106 win. Is this win proof that the Cleveland team still is a strong contender this season?