When Khris Middleton first suffered his hamstring tear ahead of the regular season, many wondered whether he would play at all this year. The initial timeline had him returning sometime in the spring, at which point the Milwaukee Bucks would surely be well outside the Eastern Conference playoff picture, having little or no incentive to bring back their combo wing.
Well, the Bucks are only 3.5 games off home-court advantage through the first-round of the playoffs, a much better showing from them than most expected. And now there’s a chance Middleton returns earlier than expected, sometime in February, according ESPN.com’s Marc Stein :
The Milwaukee Bucks are increasingly hopeful injured swingman Khris Middleton could return to the floor in early- to mid-February, according to league sources.
Sources told ESPN.com the Bucks think Middleton, who suffered a hamstring tear just days before the season began, “has a chance” to return to the lineup during a three-game homestand next month before the All-Star ?break.
Whether Middleton ultimately makes his season debut before or after the All-Star Game, he is expected to be kept on a minutes restriction as he eases way his back from the injury, sources said.
A minutes restriction was inevitable, and there’s a chance Middleton remains on one for the entire season, limiting the impact he’ll have on the Bucks’ postseason prospects.
But still: The Bucks, who notch what would be a top-seven net rating whenever Giannis Antetokounmpo is on the floor, are getting Middleton back. Slotting him alongside Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker and Malcolm Brogdon, for however long every game, can only be spun as a good thing for Milwaukee.
And a potentially terrifying thing for the rest of the East.
