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Tim BontempsESPN
BOSTON (Neth.) – Giannis Antetokounmpo had 18 points in the fourth quarter of Wednesday night’s season opener between his Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics in TD Garden.
But for the two-time reigning NBA MVP, all he thought after the game was the point he didn’t score, as his missed free throw with 0.4 seconds remaining was the difference in Boston’s thrilling 122-121 victory.
“I’m angry about it,” said Antetokounmpo after he finished with 35 points and 13 rebounds in 36 minutes, in his first game since signing a five-year supermax deal with Milwaukee earlier this month. ‘But you can’t change it. So it’s done.
“Hopefully, when I’m in the same position, I can make the next one. That’s the mentality you need to have. But of course there’s a bit of a weight on your shoulders. [in those situations] because if you miss, that’s it for your team.
“I’m a winner and I want to do whatever it takes to make my team win. But you know, you learn from every situation that basketball puts you in.”
There aren’t many situations like the one where the Bucks and Celtics found themselves at the end of this game, where the last 0.4 seconds took what felt like several lifetimes to finally get off the clock – and as a result, were turned on. both sides accompanied by a rollercoaster of emotions.
The craziness began when, with Boston’s possession 8.9 seconds behind, the ball eventually ended up in the hands of Jayson Tatum on the left wing.
Staring at Antetokounmpo, the reigning defensive player of the year of the league, Tatum settled for a tough 3-pointer sideways – one that was well defended by Antetokounmpo – which, when he left Tatum’s hand, seemed pretty far off. – line.
“I’m not sure we could have defended Tatum much better than we did,” said Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer.
But then, in an early Christmas wonder for the Celtics, the shot shot off the board and fell straight through the hoop, kicking off a raucous Celtics party when Milwaukee called time out.
“No, I’m not trying,” Tatum said, throwing his shot off the glass. “The corner I had, and knowing how long it is as soon as I let go I knew it was going to hit the board.
‘But I didn’t necessarily try. I haven’t tried that. ‘
Whether he did it or not, the result was the same. Despite that party, there was still 0.4 seconds left on the clock – enough time for Milwaukee to have one last shot at the basket. And after Antetokounmpo initially let the ball in – who later said he hoped to throw a lob to Brook Lopez’s center – Budenholzer called a time-out and this time Jrue Holiday took the ball out.
On the way to the field, Antetokounmpo said he had a simple message for Milwaukee’s new observatory: Throw the ball up and give him a chance to win a jump ball.
“I said to Jrue, ‘Just throw the ball high. Just throw it high, and I’m going to try to get it,'” said Antetokounmpo.
Holiday, who finished with 25 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in his Bucks debut, did just that – and Antetokounmpo was fouled by Celtics big man Tristan Thompson.
That earned him two free throws that, if he scored both, would tie the game. But after he had neatly made the first, Antetokounmpo’s second attempt fell short. The ball then bounced back toward him, bounced off a player, and rolled away harmlessly, causing the clock to run out and the Celtics to escape with a win.
“I love that he’s there, game on the line, opening night, to the free throw line,” said Budenholzer. He’s been working on it. He knows how important it is. I think it, again, of course we’d really like to win, you want to come out, you want to be successful, but so many good things have happened, including Giannis going. to the free-throw line with the game on the line. You can’t duplicate that in practice and it just gets better and better as we go further. “
Antetokounmpo shot just 13-for-20 off the free-throw line in clutch situations for Milwaukee last season, according to research by ESPN Stats & Information, and his career percentage in those situations – 68.2% – is below the free throw percentage in his career. general.
But despite his struggles in those situations historically, Antetokounmpo said he’s excited to have the ball in his hands with the game at stake, and is already looking forward to the next time he’s in a similar situation.
“It’s fun because you learn from it,” said Antetokounmpo. “The more you are in such situations, the more you can succeed.
‘I want to be in those moments. I want it [have the ball] along the stretch. I want to shoot the last two free throws, I want to shoot the last shot, because if you think about it, if you do that a thousand times, sometimes it goes in. becomes the hero.
And sometimes you will miss it. But you learn from it. ‘