Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers conceded that Giannis Antetokounmpo's injury "didn't look great", but said the team would find a way to win should he be sidelined. 

Antetokounmpo was forced to withdraw in the second quarter of the Bucks' 118-106 defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday with a suspected groin strain. 

The nine-time NBA All-Star managed 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting with five rebounds and four assists in 13 minutes in the first half at Rocket Arena before exiting the game. 

Antetokounmpo was ruled out by half-time, and the Bucks were outscored 59-49 after that as they dropped back-to-back games for the first time this season. 

"Didn't look great, I can tell you that," Rivers said of Antetokounmpo, who is expected to undergo an MRI scan to understand the extent of the issue. "We'll know more tomorrow.

"He grabbed it in the first quarter, and I asked him, and he said it was fine. Then, I think, he grabbed it again, and he said it was fine.

"Then, the third time is when it happened, but I think it happened earlier, in my opinion."

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It's a huge blow for Milwaukee, who have endured an indifferent start to the 2025-26 campaign and currently sit ninth in the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 8-7. 

Antetokounmpo has, however, been a shining light for the Bucks. 

He has averaged 32.6 points on 63% shooting with 11.3 rebounds and 7.1 assists in his first 12 games this season, but the Bucks have been over-reliant on their superstar. 

Indeed, his 36.4% usage rate ranked second in the NBA entering Monday and was Antetokounmpo's highest usage since the 2022-23 season.

Milwaukee are 1-1 in games Antetokounmpo has missed this season, and Rivers was already preparing a game plan in case the 30-year-old is ruled out for a period of time. 

"We got some work to do," Rivers said. "There's always a silver lining. ... I don't know what it is. It doesn't look good right now.

"If we got [Kevin Porter Jr.] out and Giannis out, that's not great for our team, but we're going to either find somebody or find something to run that will pay dividends later.

"And that's the stretch that we're about to go through. We'll be ready."