MILWAUKEE — After Giannis Antetokounmpo threw an elbow to Jaylen Brown’s face and was called for an offensive foul, it looked like he was trying to make a truce. The Bucks star reached out his hand to Brown in what appeared like a normal apology.
But instead, Antetokounmpo withdrew his hand at the last second as Brown was about to give him a high five. It was a typical “sike” move as Antetokounmpo instead touched his head with his hand. After the Celtics beat the Bucks, Brown called out Antetokounmpo when asked about the interaction.
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“Giannis is a child,” Brown said postgame. “I’m just focused on helping my team get a win, and that’s what we did tonight.”
Later on in the game, Brown also fouled Antetokounmpo hard midway through the fourth quarter that led to the officials calling for a review. Brown was hit with a flagrant 1 foul as Antetokounmpo ended up on the ground. But Brown said that foul didn’t have anything to do with the previous altercation, saying he was “just playing basketball.”
Antetokounmpo was his All-NBA self Sunday despite the Bucks loss, which is quickly becoming a season-long theme. The Bucks are now 2-8 despite their star putting up 43 points and 13 rebounds over 39 minutes in Sunday’s game. Milwaukee looked like it was in control after a 40-point first quarter, but it faltered down the stretch in the 113-107 loss to the Celtics, who improved to 9-2.
Brown made his return after a four-game absence as he‘s been slowed down by a left hip flexor injury. He didn’t have his most efficient game as he was 4-for-13 from the floor, finishing with 14 points, five rebounds and four assists. But he was up to the challenge against the Bucks physically all night — especially on the defensive end.
“I knew it would be a challenge on both sides of the ball physically,” Brown said. “They came out. Giannis had an incredible game. Their team, they shot the ball well, but we still figured out a way to win. So I’m glad this is my return game.”
