The Bucks’ stars just can’t seem to avoid the injury bug.

The Milwaukee Bucks fell 121-118 to the Indiana Pacers in overtime on Friday, forced to climb out of a 1-2 hole as the series continues. Making matters even worse? Already down Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a calf strain, Milwaukee now has to worry about Damian Lillard’s availability going forward, too.

Lillard put a major scare in Bucks fans and league followers alike early in Game 3, when he left the action after suffering an apparent left knee injury. He returned a couple minutes into the second quarter, though, then was a driving force behind Milwaukee’s second-half comeback by scoring 19 of his 28 points after intermission.

Unfortunately for Milwaukee, Lillard’s typical crunch-time heroics were nowhere to be found in overtime. Why? The eight-time All-Star re-aggravated an existing Achilles injury in the final moments of regulation, relegated to a glorified decoy as Khris Middleton tried his best to will the shorthanded, hobbling Bucks to victory on the road.

“Honestly, Dame was really struggling,” Doc Rivers said after the game, per Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “In the overtime, he literally said, ‘I’ll be the decoy. I just can’t go as far as explosion.’ So I thought Dame just being out there was huge for us.”

Lillard didn’t take a shot during the extra session, accounting for one rebound and one assist as Tyrese Haliburton led Indianapolis to a thrilling victory in the final seconds. Middleton, who’d already staved off defeat with a pair of tough game-tying triples, had another chance to extend the game on its last possession, but his off-balance three-pointer over the outstretched arms of Aaron Nesmith came up short.

Despite his bystander status in overtime, Lillard stressed from the postgame podium that he plans to play in Game 4. He certainly didn’t downplay the fraught circumstances nature of his injury, though.

I mean, that’s the plan,” Lillard said of playing on Sunday, per The Athletic. “I think, tonight, it was just so fresh, just re-aggravated after having a whole week where you could kind of get it together, but I just wanted to be on the floor, in case some opportunity came up or however I could help.

“But obviously tonight, we’re gonna get back and just have to get ahead of it because that’s not something you want to play with,” he continued. “It’s one of those spots on your body where you literally can’t do nothing about it. If you can’t move, you can’t move. So we got a couple days, tonight, to start to try to get ahead of it and just get it feeling better, try to get ready for Sunday.”

Bucks increasingly hobbled heading into crucial Game 4

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Game 4 always seemed like the most realistic early target date for Antetokounmpo’s return. He hasn’t played since April 9th, when he suffered a soleus strain in a late-season win over the Boston Celtics.

There was never a concrete timeline for Antetokounmpo to be back on the floor, but the nature of his injury ensured he’d miss multiple games against Indiana in the first round. Sunday will mark a full three weeks since his injury, a realistic target period for him to get healthy enough to play.

Antetokounmpo has indeed taken steps of late toward making his much-needed return. He was initially listed as doubtful for Game 3 and even warmed up on the Gainsbridge Fieldhouse floor, testing his injury alongside team trainers.

“He did a lot of floor stuff today, probably the most I’ve seen,” Rivers said of Antetokounmpo after Thursday’s practice, according to The Athletic. “He was shooting and moving today.”

However, the 2021 Finals MVP has yet to participate in live action during practice, a hurdle he’d normally need to jump before being cleared to play. The Bucks will surely be a bit less cautious than normal with Antetokounmpo given stakes of the postseason, but the specter of Kevin Durant’s calf strain turned torn Achilles in the 2019 NBA Finals always looms.

Keep your fingers crossed Antetokounmpo, like Lillard, is available for Game 4.

“I saw him moving around and my mindset is he’s getting close,” Rivers said of Antetokounmpo on Thursday. “Does that mean a day, four days? I’m not sure.”

Middleton’s heroic 42-point outing on Friday, meanwhile, came after he was initially listed as questionable due to a sprained right ankle. He didn’t practice Thursday,  Rivers telling reporters he “honestly” didn’t know if Middleton would be able to play.

Middleton looked no worse for the wear in Game 3, almost single-handedly keeping Milwaukee’s hopes alive late. Following a regular season marred by injuries to his knee and other ankle, though, Middleton’s status marks yet another tenuous health situation for the Bucks as their most important game of 2023-24 approaches.