As soon as it happened we knew. We didn’t really know, but we knew: The non-contact knee injury Jabari Parker suffered in the Milwaukee Bucks’ Wednesday night loss to the Miami Heat was a torn ACL. It had to be.
And, as ESPN.com’s Zach Lowe confirmed moments before the team itself, this is exactly what it was:
Bad news: MRI shows JaBari Parker has torn his ACL again, league sources say. Official update from Bucks expected shortly.
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) February 9, 2017
Parker’s recovery is supposed to take 12 months, meaning he’ll miss the rest of this season and, at best, two-thirds of 2017-18.
And just like that, the Bucks’ future is cloudy.
Yes, they still have Giannis Antetokounmpo, which is a big deal. The biggest deal. But Parker was supposed to be the second star that tied this rebuild together. He garnered low-key All-Star dap from hoops nerds. And now, this. Another torn ACL. In the same knee. He is assured of nothing now.
Parker worked his ass off to return the first time, and the Bucks have a great training staff in place. He might be fine upon return. And the Bucks just got Khris Middleton back, so they can pivot offensively, using three wings and a big beside Antetokounmpo.
Long term, though, Milwaukee might need to count on finding a superstar running mate for Antetokounmpo elsewhere. At the very least, they need someone to help bridge the gap between Parker’s absence and the return of this version of Parker, which probably won’t happen until 2018-19 at the earliest.
It’s a terribly bizarre situation, one made easier by the Bucks’ plethora of promising depth and Antetokounmpo, but one that nevertheless sucks.
