PHILADELPHIA – All-star point guard Damian Lillard did not make the trip with the Bucks as he continues his treatment of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in his right calf, but Rivers said that had to do with some encouraging news.
“We decided against it – he had a great report the other day,” Rivers said before the game. “The numbers are phenomenal and, ‘why mess with it?’ was our thing. Why flying or anything could affect that. We have much more hope today than we did three days ago, I can tell you that. And so, we’re going to take everything that we can do to see if there is a way we can get him back.”
Lillard remains out indefinitely while he is on blood thinners to help dissipate the clot, but the vein itself also needs to heal. The Journal Sentinel learned from several sources that there has been optimism that he could return for some part of the postseason – which begins April 19-20 and runs through the NBA Finals in June – but recent history among NBA players shows that would be a very quick comeback.
Giannis Antetokounmpo recalled when former teammate Mirza Teletović was diagnosed with pulmonary emboli (blood clots in both lungs) in December, 2017. Not only did Teletović not return in the 2017-18 season, he did not play in the NBA again and retired in September, 2018. It was the second time Teletović had developed an embolism, as he missed the final three months of the 2015 season with the condition.
"First of all, everybody in this room and everybody outside this room – I hope – wish Dame the best for his health. He's gotta do whatever is the best for his health," Antetokounmpo said.
"When I was a part (of a team) with Mirza Teletović I was 22 years old so I couldn't grasp and understand what was going on. But I feel like there is more research on this. Like back in the day they say you have to stay away from the game for three months, four months and then come back and do like a check up again. But now, from what I understand, it changed. You can do a check up like every one week, every two weeks.
"So, he's feeling good. We see him. He's around the team. He's in a good spirit. If he's able to come and play and help the team we would love it. Everybody in this room wants Dame to be with us, but at the end of the day you gotta prep for any possibility. And the possibility of him not being with us also."
Rivers also maintained that the Bucks must prepare as if Lillard will not rejoin them – and be pleasantly surprised if he is.
“You work on what we don’t have, right, because there’s no guarantee we’re gonna have him,” Rivers said. “If we get him back, we know how to play. But we don’t know how to play in the long germ without him. It’s really the non-Giannis minutes that we have to figure out. Before there was non-Gianni, but you had Dame. Now you don’t that. So that’s what we’re working on every day. And I haven’t been great at it, yet. So, we got work to do.”
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Bucks get encouraging news on star Damian Lillard's medical ...
