Neither Trae Young nor Giannis Antetokounmpo finished Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, and their status going forward is uncertain for a series now tied between their Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks.
Young was ruled out prior to tipoff with the deep bone bruise he suffered in his right foot in Game 3, and Antetokounmpo hyperextended his left knee in the third quarter of Tuesday’s contest. With the East’s two remaining superstars joining the growing list of impactful injuries in these NBA playoffs, the undermanned Hawks outgunned the shell-shocked Bucks 110-88 to even the series, 2-2, heading back to Milwaukee.
In this game of survival, Hawks center Clint Capela also left late in the blowout after taking a hit to the nose. Six Hawks scored in double figures, led by Lou Williams (21 points) and Bogdan Bogdanovic (20 points). Cam Reddish, who returned mid-series to Atlanta’s lineup from Achilles soreness, scored 12 points off the bench. Williams, Bogdanovic and Kevin Huerter (15 points) combined for 20 assists in Young’s absence.
Jrue Holiday’s 19 points led the Bucks, and Khris Middleton added 16 points. Both shot 6 for 17 from the floor. Antetokounmpo scored 14 points in 24 minutes before exiting. No other Bucks player reached double digits. Milwaukee shot an abysmal 39% from the field as a team and 21% from 3-point range on 39 attempts.
