UPDATE 7:18 pm ET: Danuel House (personal) is out tonight. This comes out of nowhere, and he will be missed after 27 minutes of strong defense in Game 2. Ben McLemore and Austin Rivers will have to play in both halves after splitting work in Game 2, and there could be more Jeff Green. This also helps Russell Wesbrook.
UPDATE 6:00 pm ET: Jae Crowder (ankle) is starting, as expected. He should be set for a full workload.
UPDATE 5:40 pm ET: Giannis Antetokounmpo (ankle) will not play in Game 5. It’ll be the Khris Middleton show again while Eric Bledsoe and Brook Lopez get more shots. Donte DiVincenzo also benefits in a big way after his strong play on Sunday, and George Hill is in line for more mintues.
UPDATE 5:29 pm ET: JaVale McGee (ankle) will play on Tuesday. He’s not a total lock for the rotation, but chances are he starts out and only gets minutes to start the first and third quarters. This caps Markieff Morris a bit and Dwight Howard might be a DNP-CD.
We’re set for another day of waiting on news on Giannis Antetokounmpo (ankle). The Bucks are saying he’s basically getting treatment around the clock and doing everything he has to do to get out there. At worst, he’s going to be a game-time call for the first game of the day. We’ll also have JaVale McGee (ankle) up in the air for the late game, but it sounds like Jae Crowder is good to go after a fall.
Giannis did have a walking boot on after Sunday’s game, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Players have protective boots on all the time even with minor injuries. We have him projected in right now with minutes in the mid-30s, but he may not be at 100%. Plus, the Bucks’ offense might be better if it plays through Middleton more after the win.
Middleton had a whopping 108 touches on Sunday en route to his 36/8/8 line. He and Eric Bledsoe will be busy, and it’ll be Donte DiVincenzo likely to see the biggest minutes increase with more Marvin Williams, too.
Jae Crowder got shots up yesterday after his fall, and coach Erik Spoelstra said “we’ll find out” on his status. It would be a big surprise to see him miss this one, and he should be a full go. He’s been awesome. Tyler Herro is questionable, but he should be fine and has Spo’s trust.
JaVale McGee (ankle) is questionable, but the Lakers may not even want to play him after some success going smaller. If he’s out, it’ll probably be Kyle Kuzma starting, but expect more Alex Caruso, Markieff Morris and Rajon Rondo (plenty of notes on Rondo in Matchups).
Miami Heat vs. Milwaukee Bucks, 6:30 pm ET
Jae Crowder (ankle), Tyler Herro (hip) and Kelly Olynyk (knee) are all questionable. They’ve been listed with these injuries before, and should all be good to go.
Giannis Antetokounmpo (ankle) is questionable, and will almost certainly be a game-time call.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets, 9:00 pm ET
LeBron James (groin) and Anthony Davis (finger) are probable as usual, but they’re fine. JaVale McGee (ankle) is questionable. If he can’t go Dwight Howard might find minutes somewhere off the bench after his DNP-CD.
The Rockets have a clean injury report.
