The Pacers won a playoff series against a Milwaukee Bucks team without Damian Lillard and all heck broke loose. Everybody started acting as if they won Game 7 of the NBA Championship. In the midst of the celebration, after Tyrese Haliburton hit the game-winning shot, his dad ran up on Giannis Antetokounmpo and started talking junk and cursing. The two met head-to-head and exchanged words, before being separated.
Giannis was steaming about it in the presser:
âThis is the last time Iâm going to say it. We lost the game, it doesn’t even matter. “I believe in being humble in victory, that’s the way I am,” Antetokounmpo said of the incident. “Now, there can be a lot of people out there who say, ‘No, when you win the game, you gotta talk s***, it’s a green light to be disrespectful towards somebody else.’ I disagree. I’ve won a championship, they haven’t… I love Tyrese, but having his dad one to the floor and show me his son’s face on a towel and say ‘This is what the f*** we do,’ very disrespectful. My dad, who’s not with us anymore, you come from nothing, you sell stuff in the street, you create a mentality of being humble.”
Giannis Remembers Humility Of His Immigrant Father
Giannis compared the actions of Halliburton’s dad to his own father who has since passed away. Charles Antetokounmpo, Giannisâ father, passed away in 2017 from a heart attack at age 54.
âMy dad used to come into the family room and was the most respectful person ever. When you come from nothing and work your whole life…your whole life you’ll be scared of the police deporting you and have to protect your kids by all means… you develop this mentality of being humble your whole life, to not kind of disrespect anybody and not make emotions high so nobody can snitch on you and say something bad about you,” Giannis recalls.
“Maybe when my son plays basketball, I might be on the court and 20 years from now you can play the video and say ‘Giannis you’re contradicting yourself’â
NBA No Stranger To Family Members Acting Up In Arena
It was another example of NBA family members getting way too caught up in the excitement, forgetting that they represent the ball club as well and overstepping their boundaries. Tee Morant, outspoken father of Memphis Grizzlies star Ja, has been accused of such banter with players and even media members, almost getting into with Shannon Sharpe, who got into a verbal confrontation with several Grizzlies players one time at courtside.
Nikola Jokicâs brother, Strahinja Jokic, allegedly punched a fan during a Nuggets playoff game last season. The incident occurred after the Nuggets’ victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, and video showed Joker’s older brother, Strahinja, hopping over a Ball Arena seat and down a row … kicking his way through the crowd to get closer to the male spectator.
Added Giannis, who gave up the game-winning layup to a swooping Haliburton to cap an 8-0 run in OT: âI’m happy heâs happy for his son, that’s how you’re supposed to feel⌠But coming to me and disrespecting me and cursing at me I think is totally unacceptable. Totally unacceptable. Iâm not the guy that points fingers because in my neighborhood snitches get stitches. I talked to him⌠and I think we are in a good place.â
Haliburton Says His Dad Got Wrapped Up In Emotion of Win
Haliburton says his pops was wrong.
“As far as the incident between Giannis and my pops, I had no idea it happened until I got in the back. I don’t agree with what transpired there with him,â the wonderguard said. âI think he just got excited. We had a conversation. I talked with him. I’ll talk to Giannis. I don’t think that my pops was in the right at all there. This series there was a lot of war of words and antics going back and forth,” said Haliburton who finished with 26 points and nine assists.
John Haliburton Banned From NBA Playoffs, Apologizes
John Haliburton did apologize to Giannis on social media for his overzealousness.
“I sincerely apologize to Giannis, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Pacers organization for my actions following tonight’s game. This was not a good reflection on our sport, or my son and I will not make that mistake again,” Haliburton wrote in an X post.
Fans Want John Haliburton Banned From NBA Playoffs
Fans called for the All-Star guard’s father to be banned from the arena.
“Evidence of Mr. Haliburton “doing too much.” In this video. The NBA should not allow him to sit courtside the rest of the playoffs. Do all that from a suite. It’s a bad look for the Pacers and the league. Takes away from a great game and comeback,” said one fan under a video of the clash between Giannis and John Haliburton.
“Imagine if a common fan ran onto the court the way Halliburtonâs bum father did? Theyâd be arrested and banned from NBA games. Ball is in your court @NBA Embarrassing excuse for a league,” ranted another fan.
The game itself was everything the NBA ordered; a heated, chippy, series where the decisive game was decided by one point in OT.
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