Giannis Antetokounmpo electrified the crowd at the Fiserv Forum with his performance in the last game against the Indiana Pacers. The night was one for Antetokounmpo and the Bucks to celebrate, only to be interrupted by the Pacers confiscating the ball to celebrate rookie Oscar Tshiebwe’s first NBA points.
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The Greek Freak unleashed a career-high 64-point game, helping the Bucks win 140-126 against the Pacers. While Giannis’ anger is justified, NBA veteran Richard Jefferson believes Antetokounmpo can resolve this issue by giving Tshiebwe his due flowers. According to a post by Clutch Points on X (formerly Twitter), Jefferson said,
“Giannis should buy it back from the kid kind of like how you buy somebody’s number. Just give the kid a gesture.”
Jefferson believed that the rookie deserved the game ball much more than Giannis to keep it as memorabilia from his first points in the league. However, if he were to tell the story of Giannis snatching the ball away from him, it would unnecessarily antagonize the Greek superstar further in the league.
While it is a usual norm for rookies to carry the game ball for their first points, possessing this prized ball, in this case, seems much more debatable now. Both Antetokounmpo and Tshiebwe have solid claims on the same, making this situation much more complicated and complex.
The Bucks and the Pacers engaged in a postgame altercation
Having played a true highlight game of his career, Giannis looked forward to carrying the prized game ball, only to find it missing. A Pacers assistant coach had confiscated the ball for rookie Oscar Tshiebwe, who scored his first points in the NBA. The Bucks, as well as Antetokounmpo himself, did not seem quite happy with this affair.
Unleashing a verbal torrent at the Pacers’ bench, Giannis seemed extremely disgruntled and angered at this controversial move. His voice amplified through the hushed stadium, wherein he exclaimed, “That’s my ball!” on the Pacers staff and bench.
While no physical altercation was reported, Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlise seemed visibly disappointed with this skirmish. Carlise explained their move to the press, “There was a misunderstanding about the game ball. It was Oscar Tshiebwe’s first official NBA point, so we always get the game ball. We were not thinking about Giannis’ franchise record.”
Even though Giannis didn’t get the game ball, the night surely belonged to him. There is little doubt that the Bucks forward played the best game of his career bursting on both sides of the court and taking his team to victory.
