Bucks injury report: Will Giannis Antetokounmpo play against the Bulls? Khris Middleton has ruled out the final game before the All-Star break.

THE The Milwaukee Bucks (40-17), winners of 11 straight games, take on the Chicago Bulls (26-32) on Thursday at the United Center in the final game before the 2023 All-Star break.

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Bucks injury report

The all-star break will start early for several members of the Bulls and Bucks, who face off in Chicago on Thursday night in the final game before the weekend festivities in Salt Lake City.

At the 12:30 p.m. CT injury report, Bucks star Khris Middleton had been ruled out with right knee pain, joining teammates Pat Connaughton (left calf pain), Jae Crowder and Bobby Portis on the bench. Portis has been out with an MCL sprain since Jan. 23, and Crowder has yet to appear with the Bucks as he works on repackaging after Milwaukee traded him at the deadline. The team previously said they expected to hold him during the break.

The Bulls will also miss a number of top players, including star DeMar DeRozan, with a strain of right quads. Lonzo Ball (left knee surgery), Alex Caruso (left foot pain), Goran Dragic (left knee pain), Javonte Green (right knee surgery) and Derrick Jones Jr. (left adductor sprain) are also absent for Chicago.

As of 3:30 p.m., Giannis Antetokounmpo, who will captain one of the all-star teams this weekend, was listed as available with right knee pain.

Middleton didn’t play on Feb. 10 but saw nearly 25 minutes of action against the Celtics on Tuesday, the biggest workload since returning from a knee injury on Jan. 23.

“I feel good. I still feel like I have a long way to go, especially with; hopefully my minutes will start to increase here,” Middleton said after the game against Boston. “Every time they do it, I know I have to go through that cycle too. So right now I feel like I’m going in the right direction. I just have to keep pushing myself.”

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Connaughton haven’t missed a game since November 25, which was in the early stages of a comeback after a 15-game absence to start the year after straining its calf.

“He played really well, overall he chewed up a lot of minutes,” Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer said of Connaughton who appeared on the injury report on Thursday. “I think it’s in the background, I think it’s something that the medical group is aware of, we’re aware of, but mostly I would say it’s not something that has changed or impacted everything. which we’ve done, really, since he came back and was back to his normal minutes and comfort level.

Sandro Mamukelashvili heading to G League Next Up game

The Bucks’ sophomore big man will play in a showcase in Salt Lake City as he was named as an injury replacement for the upcoming G League game, which highlights development league players from the NBA.

In four regular season games with the Wisconsin Herd — the Bucks’ G League affiliate in Oshkosh — Mamukelashvili averaged 23.3 points and 13 rebounds. He also played 11 games for the Herd for its in-season tournament, the Showcase Cup, and averaged 19.3 points and 9.1 rebounds. He also appeared in 23 games for the Bucks.

Mamukelashvili will play for Team Luka Garza and face Team Scoot Henderson on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Jon M. Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City before the NBA All-Star Game. The game will be broadcast live on NBA TV.

Who do the Bucks play next?

The all-star break begins and the Bucks will be out until they host Miami at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 24 at Fiserv Forum.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday will compete in the All-Star Game in Utah on Sunday night, while Thanasis Antetokounmpo and Alex Antetokounmpo will team up with their brother in the Skills Challenge on Saturday.