Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo feeling grateful that he’s healthy for the postseason this time around

MILWAUKEE (AP) - As he discusses his excitement about finally being healthy for the start of a postseason run, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo compares himself to a certain action movie star.

"I love playing in, how can I say, pressure, stressful situations," Antetokounmpo said this week as the Bucks prepare to open the playoffs Saturday at Indiana. "I'm like Tom Cruise. Have you ever seen the movies, the Tom Cruise movies that he does all the stunts? I think he gets an adrenaline rush. I love being there again."

After missing all of Milwaukee's postseason run last year and part of it the year before - with his absence leading to consecutive first-round exits - Antetokounmpo is back to lead the Bucks as he pursues his second career title.

If it's not quite a mission impossible, it certainly seems improbable.

The Bucks are expected to open the playoffs without seven-time all-NBA guard Damian Lillard, who has been out for the last month with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf. The Bucks are seeded fifth in the Eastern Conference, their lowest playoff position since 2018. BetMGM Sportsbook gives the Bucks only a 37% chance of even getting past their first-round series with the fourth-seeded Pacers.

Yet the Bucks believe they can compete with anyone as long as Antetokounmpo is available. They remember how much the two-time MVP’s absence was felt last year in their 4-2 series loss to Indiana.

"Let's be honest," Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. "Take the best player off of every team and it hurts them. Take one of the best players of our generation off your team, it's going to crush you. It's just nice having him on the floor."

Antetokounmpo, 30, missed last year's Indiana series after straining his left calf in the 79th game of the regular season. A year earlier, he bruised his lower back in the first quarter of Milwaukee's opening playoff game against Miami and didn't return to action until Game 4 of a series the top-seeded Bucks eventually lost 4-1.

At the end of last season, Antetokounmpo said he'd have to ponder changing his offseason program or make other adaptations to assure he'd stay healthy for the playoffs. He now enters the playoffs in peak form after leading Milwaukee to an eight-game winning streak to close the regular season.

"I made a lot of adjustments - that I'll keep private - but luck definitely plays a role, too," Antetokounmpo said. "You can be unlucky. Going down three games, or six games, I don't even remember, before the playoffs last year, that's being unlucky. But yeah, I think we made a lot of adjustments, me and my team, and I'm here today, so I'm happy."

The last time Antetokounmpo played in an entire playoff series, he had 33.9 points, 14.7 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game in the Bucks' 4-3 Eastern Conference semifinal loss to Boston in 2022. He became the first player in NBA history to collect 200 points, 100 rebounds and 50 assists in a single playoff series.

A year before that, Antetokounmpo missed the final two games of the Eastern Conference finals with a hyperextended left knee but came back to earn NBA Finals MVP honors and score 50 points in a title-clinching Game 6 victory over the Phoenix Suns.

Now he's back and leading a new-look Bucks roster.

Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton are the only players remaining from Milwaukee's 2021 championship team. Kyle Kuzma, acquired at the trade deadline, was on the Los Angeles Lakers' 2020 championship team but last made the playoffs in 2021. Kevin Porter Jr. and Ryan Rollins, whose roles expanded due to Lilllard’s health issues, have never played in a postseason game.

Lillard’s absence has resulted in more ball-handling responsibilities for Antetokounmpo, who has been playing particularly well even by his lofty standards.

The 6-11 forward ended the regular season ranked second in scoring (30.4), sixth in rebounding (11.9) and 13th in assists (6.5). Antetokounmpo is the only player ever to average 30 points while shooting at least 60% from the floor, and he's done that each of the last two seasons.

In the six games he's played this month, Antetokounmpo has averaged 31.8 points, 12 rebounds and 11.8 assists while recording four triple-doubles.

"During this period where Dame has been out, he's been seeing consistent double teams, so he's just continued to evolve as a great player," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "He's mixing in the assist, the laser passes, the skip passes cross-court which are very difficult to deal with when you're double-teaming him, and his shooting has gotten better and better."

Now he gets a chance to try carrying that over to the postseason, a stage he missed dearly last year.

"Watching the game on the bench is not fun," Antetokounmpo said. "It's not fun. Maybe in 20 years, I can put on a polo or a suit - I don't know what the coaches wear - and watch it from the bench. But now I'm just happy that I'm out there and I'm in the heat of the battle and I'm able to get my hands dirty and help my team win."