They say an image is worth 1,000 words, or in Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo’s case, a quick sprint to the locker room will suffice.
In Wednesday’s game, Giannis put up a franchise record 64 points, surpassing the previous mark set by Michael Redd in 2006. This franchise moment was unfortunately overshadowed by an assistant coach taking the game ball after the final buzzer and retrieving it for Indiana Pacers rookie center Oscar Tshiebwe, who “scored his first career basket.”
At least, that’s what Rick Carlisle told the media after the game. The only problem is that it wasn’t Tshiebwe’s first career basket. Tshiebwe scored his only point against the Los Angeles Lakers on Dec 9, so why was there a fuss to get the game ball?
Why last night’s incident between the Milwaukee Bucks and Indiana Pacers was unneeded?
How many times do you see it where there’s a postgame scuffle after a massive performance? Not often, and this being over a game ball shouldn’t have been as big of a deal, but recently, the two teams haven’t liked each other, so something small like this was going to turn into something big.
Giannis shouldn’t have run into the opposing tunnel to try and retrieve the game ball because eventually, you’d hope somebody would have retrieved it for him.
Pacers Head Coach Rick Carlisle shared his thoughts about what happened in Wednesday’s scuffle.
“It was Oscar Tshiebwe's first official NBA point… We were not thinking about Giannis’ franchise record… My GM got elbowed in the ribs by one of their players. He certainly has a bruised rib.”
Rick Carlisle on the postgame scuffle over the game ball 🗣️pic.twitter.com/rHM1ToC9E6
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 14, 2023
For both sides, it was an unfortunate situation, and the potential for somebody getting suspended for any length of time due to this matter wouldn’t have been good for the league.
However, if Tshiebwe’s first official basket was a few days prior. The incident on Indiana’s side shouldn’t have taken place. But the two teams got into it earlier in the game when Aaron Nesmith took down Giannis Antetokounmpo, which resulted in a technical foul for Nesmith and Bobby Portis after he came over to defend his guy. Portis was later ejected after getting into it with Obi Toppin.
The rivalry between the Milwaukee Bucks and Indiana Pacers has ratcheted up, and it will be exciting to see if the two squads meet in a playoff series because, after last night’s incident, the Pacers may have overtaken the Boston Celtics as the Bucks’ most heated rivalry.
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