Paul Millsap recently had an MRI on his left knee and the results of the exam showed no damage, Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said Sunday. However, Millsap missed his fifth straight game due to left knee tightness. The Hawks, in the midst of a six-game losing streak, have lost every game in the absence of the starting power forward. The Hawks are 0-7 overall this season without Millsap.
Budenholzer said Millsap has seen team doctors but did not indicate whether the all-star has seen a specialist concerning the injury.
Millsap has experienced swelling in his knee and at this time that is considered the major issue.
There is no indication whether Millsap will be able to play in the Hawks’ next game against the Suns on Tuesday night.
“Hopefully between now and then he makes more progress and there is a chance but at this point we don’t know about Tuesday,” Budenholzer said.
Millsap is the Hawks leading scorer at 18.1 points per game and is second on the team in rebounds (7.7), assists (3.8) and steals (1.3).
The Hawks and Millsap are in a delicate situation in dealing with the injury. The Hawks are fighting for a playoff spot and position. They are tied for fifth in the Eastern Conference standings with 10 games remaining in the regular season. While it’s unlikely they will fall out of the playoffs, they could drop to the eighth and final spot as they struggle. Millsap will most likely opt of his player option and become an unrestricted free agent this summer. A notion that Millsap may have lingering effects of the injury moving forward could be a concern.
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