To say that the last meeting between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Indiana Pacers back on December 14 was a heated encounter would be an understatement. The two teams nearly came to blows after the Pacers decided to take the game ball following Giannis Antetokounmpo’s career night.
In the end, however, Giannis didn’t actually want the ball. This is despite the fact that he charged the Pacers locker room after learning that they tried to take the ball away after the final buzzer.
Milwaukee Bucks Star Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Career Night
After scoring a career-high 64 points in Milwaukee’s 140-126 win, Giannis understandably wanted the game ball for himself. A Pacers assistant coach, however, took the ball shortly after the game ended in order to give it to rookie Oscar Tshiebwe, who himself scored his first NBA point that same evening.
Antetokounmpo was having none of it, though, and he decided to retrieve the ball himself from the Pacers locker room. Chaos ensued.
This angle of Giannis running into Pacers tunnel to look for game ball 😳
(via tyschrades/IG) pic.twitter.com/EUTYuK5uIb
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 14, 2023
Leaked audio of Giannis in the tunnel going after the game ball in Pacers’ possession:
“You want that ball? You’re not getting that ball.”pic.twitter.com/wvzFdlCZ2X
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 14, 2023
Giannis’ Endearing Gesture
The Bucks eventually got their hands on the ball after some unsavory scenes. However, when coach Adrian Griffin awarded it to Giannis in the locker room after the game, Antetokounmpo decided to reject it.
A video has now surfaced as to what really happened in the Bucks locker room and why Giannis opted not to take the ball during his historic evening:
On the night Giannis got his career high, he gave the game ball to Dame instead because he knew it wasn’t the real game ball😭😭 pic.twitter.com/7syH7WvuBN
— 🥤 (@34for2) December 31, 2023
In case you missed it, Damian Lillard also achieved a historic milestone during that game. He entered into the Top 5 in career three-pointers in NBA history, which is an undeniably massive feat. So much so, that Giannis thought Dame deserved the game ball more than he did.
It’s either that or Antetokounmpo just wasn’t buying the fact that that was the real game ball.
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