SPORTS LINE
The Milwaukee Bucks.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, two-time league MVP, was expected to play through a left knee patellar tendinopathy issue, and the Bucks have now confirmed his availability. He played against the Pacers as expected. Two other Bucks standard roster players are down for the count. Backup combo, forward Taurean Prince will miss his second straight game with a neck strain, while starting point guard Kevin Porter Jr. will be on the shelf for the next month or so, recovering from a meniscus tear.
The Milwaukee Bucks announced point guard Kevin Porter Jr. sustained an injury to his right meniscus upon returning to on-court activity, setting back his timeline for return. Porter will undergo surgery and is set to miss about four weeks during his recovery. Before his exit from the game, the 25-year-old guard had 10 points and two assists through nine minutes. The Bucks have had Ryan Rollins start in Porter’s place since his injury, and he has performed well in the sixth-year guard’s absence. Through his five games this season, Rollins is averaging 18.6 points and five assists, both of which blow his previous career highs out of the water. Still just 23, the 6-foot-3 University of Toledo product is making a case to be the Bucks’ long-term solution to Damian Lillard’s absence as its starting point guard of the future, even when Porter does return.
Antetokounmpo, 30, appears to be making a push for a third MVP award in what has already been a Hall of Fame career. Through his eight healthy games for the 6-3 Bucks, the 6-foot-11 big man has been averaging 33.4 points on .642/.538/.634 shooting splits, 12.9 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 1.0 steals a night. For now, the Bucks’ pace-and-space approach to the game has paid major dividends. Milwaukee ranks eighth in overall pace (102.2), ninth in offensive rating (118.0), and 17th in defensive rating (115.6).
The Green Bay Packers.
The Green Bay Packers are 5-3-1. In a normal season, that might be something to be happy about. After all, if the regular season ended today, they’d be preparing for a playoff game. The problem is the performance and talent in practice, and the locker room doesn’t match the performance when it counts during games. It is time to compete for a championship. Jordan Love was the hand-picked successor to Aaron Rodgers in the 2020 NFL Draft. The pick was met with scrutiny that is not worth rehashing. Two-and-a-half years into his run as the starter, Love has proven a capable quarterback. They reached the playoffs in both years as the starter, with his lone playoff win coming in his first season at the helm.
The Packers have won five games in 10 weeks. Their offense looks stuck in the mud. It cannot score in the first half. The last two weeks, it could hardly score at all, managing a feeble 20 points in back-to-back home losses to the Panthers and Eagles. Monday’s game against the Eagles was a chance to wash the bad taste out of their mouth from an embarrassing home loss as a double-digit favorite against the Panthers. Philadelphia had its best defensive effort of the season at Green Bay and got a 10-7 win. The Packers didn’t score for the first 54 minutes of the game. When they got the ball back just before the two-minute warning, trailing by a field goal, the Eagles got the stop they needed to close out the win. Neither team scored in the first half, and there were no touchdowns until the fourth quarter. Jalen Hurts threw one up to DeVonta Smith, who made a great contested catch in the end zone for a 36-yard score. There hadn’t been a scoreless first half in the 2024 season. There wasn’t one this season until Monday night as the Packers and Eagles kept each other off the scoreboard. The 0-0 tie at halftime was the first time neither team scored before halftime of a Monday night game since Browns-Ravens in 2009, ESPN said. The defenses showed up, at least.
The Packers had a shot to get off the field on third-and-12 after that touchdown, but Hurts made a nice pass to Smith for a first down. That was a massive play at that point in the game, keeping the ball from the Packers after their offense finally showed some signs of life.
