Bucks getting healthy as preseason nears its end
Bledsoe making progress; Wilson cleared to play
The Milwaukee Bucks aren't at full health right now, but they're getting closer. With the regular season a week away, it's good to be trending in that direction.
The Bucks had everyone on the floor in some capacity Wednesday in their first full practice since returning from a twogame road trip. That includes both Eric Bledsoe (rib injury) and D.J. Wilson (left hamstring strain), who have missed significant time this preseason.
“Bled is making good progress,” coach Mike Budenholzer said following practice at the Sports Science Center. “He was able to do practice today, the noncontact part of practice, so I think that's a pretty good sign and a good step in the right direction. D.J. was basically cleared. He had a good practice and did everything – scrimmage and contact – and played well.”
Bledsoe fractured the cartilage between his 9th and 10th rib last Wednesday in a preseason game against the Utah Jazz. With the Bucks' regular-season opener set for Oct. 24, Bledsoe's timetable to return remains unclear.
For Bledsoe, it's not an issue of risking re-injury; rather, his return hinges on the dissipation of pain. When his pain be
comes minimal, GM Jon Horst said recently, Bledsoe will be able to play.
Wilson, who missed the Bucks' open scrimmage as well as their four preseason games, could play again as soon as the preseason finale at 7 p.m. Thursday against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Fiserv Forum.
“You always want to get some preseason minutes in and gets some reps in at game speed and with refs and all those things,” Budenholzer said. “I think it will be really good for him to play tomorrow.”
While the Bucks have missed both Bledsoe and Wilson, the team has played well throughout the preseason. Milwaukee is unbeaten and has demonstrated its depth with different lineups performing well and seven players averaging 10-plus points per game.
That record and those stats will be soon forgotten, but the underlying development has been positive.
“We're in a good spot,” Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo said. “Obviously, Bledsoe getting hurt in the home game against Utah it was almost like a minor setback because we would love him to be here with us and be getting better together. But I think … guys individually are getting better, the team's getting better and day-by-day we're going to get in the spot we want to be.”
Baby on board
For a week it's been widely known that Antetokounmpo and his longtime girlfriend, Mariah Danae Riddlespringer, are expecting a baby together. Riddlespringer announced the coming of “Baby Fr34k” last Thursday via Instagram.
But when asked about it on Wednesday, Antetokounmpo feigned disbelief.
“I don't follow my girlfriend on Instagram, so I don't know if she posted or not,” he said trying to keep a straight face. “I haven't seen a belly bump, so I don't know if there's a baby on the way, but you know – I'm joking.
“Yeah, we're excited, we're excited to have our first baby. I don't want to talk a lot about it, I just want to focus on basketball and keep my family stuff at the house, but we're definitely expecting a baby and we're happy about it.”
Part of the excitement involves his plans to deck his child out in his signature gear. Antetokounmpo's first sneaker, the Zoom Freak 1, debuted to record sales this summer and Antetokounmpo promised his child will wear a baby version of that design among other things.
“There's going to definitely be some baby Zoom Freaks and some matching tech fleece and matching Nike sweats and all that,” Antetokounmpo said. “He's going to be just like his dad.”
Bigger picture
While the Bucks close out the preseason on Thursday, the game itself will be serving a larger purpose. This is the 43rd annual “MACC Fund” game, with all proceeds from the game going to the MACC Fund to support research to find a cure for childhood cancer and related blood disorders.
“It means a lot,” Antetokounmpo said of supporting the MACC Fund. “I think this is the seventh year I've been associated with that and just having that MACC game means a lot. It helps a lot of kids and it's always great to be a part of something like that.”