Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton was so enthusiastic about Indiana’s unbelievable extra time rally that he didn’t notice what led to the postgame scuffle between his teammates and the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night time.
Then he received to the locker room, watched the replay and winced when he noticed his father, John, on the court docket, confronting two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
“I had no thought it occurred till I received again to the locker room and so they confirmed me the video of my pops,” the two-time All-Star mentioned after he made the decisive layup with 1.3 seconds left to provide Indiana a 119-118 victory and a 4-1 sequence win. “We had a bit of speak about it. I don’t agree with what transpired there. I feel basketball is basketball and let’s preserve it on the court docket. I feel he simply received excited.”
Antetokounmpo wasn’t happy, both, after his group blew a seven-point lead within the last 40 seconds of extra time, sending the Bucks to their third straight first-round exit. The 2-time MVP didn’t acknowledge John Haliburton, considering he was simply one other fan who had run onto the court docket.
Antetokounmpo mentioned he likes Haliburton, calling him an excellent competitor, however he mentioned John Haliburton displaying a towel along with his son’s picture whereas yelling “that is what we (expletive) do” was unsuitable.
“I really feel like that’s very, very disrespectful,” mentioned Antetokounmpo, who completed with 30 factors, 20 rebounds and 13 assists.
Haliburton appeared genuinely upset concerning the incident, promising to succeed in out to Antetokounmpo earlier than the groups play once more.
“I’ll speak to Giannis about it will definitely,” mentioned Haliburton, who grew up in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. “I don’t assume my pops was in the appropriate in any respect there. It’s unlucky what occurred on the finish there.
“It’s unlucky what occurred there (the scuffle), however I feel it’s simply competitors,” he added. “So far as my pops, I don’t agree with what occurred there. We’ll have a dialog.”
Antetokounmpo informed a narrative concerning the Bucks’ 2020-21 championship season, when his mom attended each recreation from mid-February via the title run. The Greek celebrity mentioned his mother wasn’t even certain whether or not she might come onto the court docket to hug him on the finish of the ultimate recreation and famous that his members of the family sometimes don’t sit courtside.
The Pacers and Bucks have met 20 occasions over the previous two seasons, with the Pacers successful eight 11 playoff video games and each postseason sequence in an more and more heated rivalry.
