Bucks brace for Mirza Teletovic's indefinite absence due to pulmonary emboli

Matt Velazquez
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Bucks' Mirza Teletovic will be out indefinitely.

Before their shootaround at the Sports Science Center on Friday morning, the Milwaukee Bucks were briefed on the status of teammate Mirza Teletovic.

Though the organization announced Thursday evening that Teletovic had been diagnosed with pulmonary emboli — blood clots in both lungs — the players received an update from the team’s medical staff as they continued their preparations for Friday’s game against the Chicago Bulls.

“It’s tough, man,” Bucks center Thon Maker said. “Just hearing his story when he first told us about when he first had the same situation. … It’s scary for our guy. And not to be able to play the game that you love, the game he’s been playing all his life is tough. He’s going to fight through it; he went through it the first time so he’s going to fight through it. We’re here to support him.”

Pulmonary embolism is the sudden blockage of a major blood vessel in the lung leading to sudden shortness of breath, dizziness and chest pain. In most cases, the blood clots are small, but they can damage the lungs. However, if the clot is large and stops blood flow to the lung, the condition can be life-threatening.

Blood clots can form for a variety of reasons, with certain conditions, prolonged sitting or bed rest, smoking and surgery among the common causes. The blood clot may start in an arm or leg, known as deep venous thrombosis, and detach and travel to the lungs, which can be deadly.

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The genesis of Teletovic’s condition is not known. He underwent arthroscopic surgery Nov. 21 to repair cartilage in his left knee and had been rehabilitating under the watch of the team doctors when he experienced unusual fatigue earlier this week. That’s when the embolism was discovered. Following a 10-day rest period, Teletovic, 32, will begin a supervised rehabilitation.

This isn’t the first time Teletovic has dealt with this condition. In January 2015 while with the Brooklyn Nets, Teletovic was deactivated for the final three months of the season after developing blood clots in his lungs. He bounced back the next season with the Phoenix Suns, setting an NBA record for the most three-pointers off the bench (179).

Others players have not been as fortunate, as the career of former Raptors and Heat forward Chris Bosh was cut short due to the continued presence of blood clots, which developed into a pulmonary embolism on at least one occasion.

“It’s unfortunate,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said of Teletovic. “He’s been through this once before and understanding we thought maybe we’re past that, but just for what has taken place it’s not about the basketball, it’s about life. We hope for a speedy recovery and we’ll see. Hopefully, he has a chance to come back and play.”

The timetable for Teletovic’s return is unclear, but it doesn’t seem likely he’ll be back in action soon. In fact, with the reoccurrence of pulmonary embolism, his basketball career could be in question.

“He’s one of the best in that locker room,” Kidd said. “He’s a veteran and for the Bucks as an organization, we can only give support to him and his family until he’s ready to make a decision on playing or not playing.”

Teletovic has missed the past 16 games heading into Friday’s contest, including 10 after his surgery. In 10 games this season, Teletovic is averaging 7.1 points and 2.3 rebounds while hitting 46.7% of his three-point attempts.

“I know it’s a struggle for him and his family and my heart goes out to him and his struggle,” Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon said. “But you know, it’s going to be a struggle for the team. He’s a key piece to this team coming off the bench. He brings a lot to the table for us, so he will be missed. Hopefully, we can get him back at the end of the season.”