The mishap led to a heated exchange between Giannis Antetokounmpo and a Pacers staff member as well as Buck’s players running to the Pacers tunnel to retrieve the ball.
The mishap led to a heated exchange between Giannis Antetokounmpo and a Pacers staff member as well as Buck’s players running to the Pacers tunnel to retrieve the ball.
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The mishap led to a heated exchange between Giannis Antetokounmpo and a Pacers staff member as well as Buck’s players running to the Pacers tunnel to retrieve the ball.
What started as a massive celebration following a historic scoring night for Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo quickly turned into a heated exchange and fracas at Fiserv Forum.
Video above: Former Knicks GM discusses game ball drama with Derrick Rose
Members of the visiting Indiana Pacers swiped the game ball after the Bucks win, Pacers Coach Rick Carlisle told reporters.
Earlier in the evening, Antetokounmpo broke the Bucks franchise record for points in a single game, dropping 64 points in the 140-126 victory.
Despite the feat, Antetokounmpo did not end up with the game ball, as is customary for nights like his.
Carlisle called it a misunderstanding when someone in the Pacers organization took the ball. He said his team took the ball because Pacers rookie forward Oscar Tshiebwe had scored his first NBA point during the game.
“We always get the game ball. We were not thinking about Giannis’ franchise record. So we grabbed the ball and a couple couple of minutes later, several of their players ended up in our hallway,” Carlisle confirmed.
“I don’t think any punches were landed, but my general manager got elbowed in the ribs by one of their players,” he added, “We don’t need the official game ball. There’s two game balls there. You know, we could have taken the other one, but it didn’t need to escalate to that.”
VIDEO: @Pacers coach on stolen game ball from @Giannis_An34 historic night at @FiservForum @WISN12News (video courtesy @BallySportWI ) pic.twitter.com/4zmGohI2ig
Bally Sports Wisconsin, which broadcast the game, captured a heated exchange between Antetokounmpo and a member of the Pacers staff.
Still words being exchanged after the game has gone final.#FearTheDeer #NBA pic.twitter.com/IttboBCGsb
“This is not how we thought this night was going to end,” analyst Lisa Byington said during the broadcast.
Bucks guard Cam Payne and Forward Jae Crowder could be seen in the tunnel leading to the Pacers locker room, although the conversation was not clear on the broadcast.
It was the third time the Bucks squared off against the Pacers this season. The most recent contest, on Dec. 7, ended with a Pacers victory and the Bucks eliminated from the in-season tournament.
“Things are heated with the competition. You know, I understand all that. But for it to come into the hallway, it was didn’t it didn’t need to happen that way,” Carlisle said.
After the game, Giannis told reporters the game ball he eventually received did not feel like the one he played within the game.
“I have a ball, but I don’t know if it’s the game ball. It doesn’t feel like the game ball to me. It feels like a brand new ball. I can tell, I played , what, 35 minutes today? I know how the game ball felt.”
He said the ball he received he will give to his mother.
He finished the night with 64 points and 14 rebounds.
The two teams face off in the regular season only two more times. The next matchup is a New Year’s Day contest at Fiserv Forum, with the next game two days later in Indiana.
The record-setting night was the most points a member of the Bucks scored since Michael Redd finished with 57 points in a 2006 loss to the Utah Jazz.
In a 2021 interaction between Antetokounmpo and Redd, Giannis predicted he would one day break the record.
Giannis: “One day I’m going to break your record”
Michael Redd: “I know you will” pic.twitter.com/d24ju3jb8H
“One day I’m going to break your record,” Giannis said in a video posted to the Bucks Twitter account.
“I know you will,” Redd replied.
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