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Report says Giannis Antetokounmpo is to blame for altercation late in Milwaukee Bucks' win over the Sacramento Kings

It all could have been avoided had Giannis just gone his own way.
Matthew Dugandzic|
Report says Giannis Antetokounmpo is to blame for altercation late in Milwaukee Bucks' win over the Sacramento Kings
Report says Giannis Antetokounmpo is to blame for altercation late in Milwaukee Bucks' win over the Sacramento Kings

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The game between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Sacramento Kings got a little testy with just 15 seconds remaining as Brook Lopez took exception to Trey Lyles pushing Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo in the back. Things quickly escalated as multiple players got involved, and the referees had to step in to break the scrum up.

The incident was unnecessary, trivial, and could have been totally avoided had Giannis not tried to get cute in the endgame, says a couple of senior reporters from Sports Illustrated.

No need for it

According to Chris Mannix and Chris Herring, the entire incident was Giannis’ doing. Up eight, 132-124, with ball possession, all the Greek Freak had to do was dribble out the clock—something that even the Kings star De’Aaron Fox alluded to. However, Giannis decided to step into Lyle’s path, something the latter did not appreciate.

“Watch the replay: Giannis dribbled directly into Lyles’s path. There was no need for it. The Bucks were up eight. All Giannis had to do was park himself at midcourt and dribble out the clock. Instead, he cut right in front of Lyles, who, understandably, deemed that disrespectful,” wrote Mannix.

Mannix continued that he was puzzled by a few things that Giannis has done of late. This includes going for a triple-double by intentionally missing a layup.

“Giannis is doing some weird things lately. He intentionally missed a layup to secure the rebound needed for a triple-double (or so he thought), and now he’s picking a fight with … Trey Lyles? Come on. That was a cheap move by Giannis, and he knows it,” added Mannix.

Got unnecessarily cute

Although the supposed “fight” was much ado over nothing, it will certainly warrant fines when the league finishes investigating it. Herring says it did not need to happen had Giannis just stood pat.

“Giannis got unnecessarily cute (or annoying, depending on how you see it) at the very end of the game. No clue why when he could have easily stood still and avoided Lyles’s path. That doesn’t mean Lyles needed to shove him, but it also wasn’t surprising that he did, particularly on the Kings’ home floor. Two wrongs don’t make a right, but Giannis—brilliant as his game is—didn’t need to do that to begin with.”

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Matthew Dugandzic
MATTHEW DUGANDZIC

Matthew finished his bachelor's degree in Economics (Management) at the University of Split and got his master's degree in the same field at the University of Zadar. Whether it is playing the game as an undersized 6'3'' power forward or simply watching it, Matthew can't get enough of it. After all, he has been an avid NBA fan since the 2000s. But don't get him wrong, as Matthew still loves the old-school NBA and is a true student of the game. From on-court moments to off-court stuff, whether it's about the stars of modern-day basketball or legends of the game, Matthew covers every category of the NBA world and basketball in general, as long as it makes for an engaging and exciting story.