Giannis Antetokounmpo suffered a worrying calf injury as the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Boston Celtics 104-91 in their heavyweight NBA Eastern Conference showdown on Tuesday.

Former NBA Most Valuable Player Antetokounmpo crumpled to the court in a non-contact incident in the third quarter after in-bounding to team-mate Damian Lillard.

Antetokounmpo, who missed games last month with an Achilles injury, hobbled off the court in clear discomfort and did not return to the game at Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum.

The Bucks later said Antetokounmpo had suffered a left soleus strain and would get an MRI scan to assess the injury.

Asked what level of concern there was about Antetokounmpo's injury, Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers replied: "Good question. High, I would say that. He's Giannis.

Any significant injury to Antetokounmpo would be a brutal blow to the Bucks' hopes of making a deep run in the playoffs.

Boston coach Joe Mazzulla meanwhile drew positives from his team's defeat as they prepare for the challenges of the playoffs.

"It's good for us to be in a bunch of different situations," Mazzulla said. "That was the first time that the game hasn't gone our way since I can't remember when.

"So to me it's a good opportunity to just kind of play through it, find different ways to build stuff on either end. It's a good situation for us because we haven't seen it for a while."

In other early games on Tuesday, the Philadelphia 76ers' resurgence since Joel Embiid's return from injury continued as they bagged a sixth straight win in a 120-102 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Embiid finished with 37 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists to leave the Sixers on 45-35, just behind the sixth placed Indiana Pacers [46-34]. Both teams have just two regular season fixtures remaining.

In Charlotte meanwhile, Luka Doncic scored a 39-point triple double as the Dallas Mavericks' hot streak continued with a 130-104 road win over the Hornets. (AFP)