Is This the Reason Why Pacers Stole Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 64 Point Game Ball Which Made Him Chase Them into Locker Room?

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a historic night on Wednesday, scoring 64 points in a thrilling victory over the Indiana Pacers. But the Milwaukee Bucks star was not in a celebratory mood after the game, as he chased the Pacers into their locker room to fight them for stealing his game ball.

What Made Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Chase Pacers into their Locker Room to Fight?

The incident happened after the final buzzer, when the Pacers players left the court without congratulatory handshakes, but also with the ball that was used during the game. Antetokounmpo made it clear that he wanted the ball, as it was a souvenir of his career-high performance, but for some reason the Pacers did not give it back to him.

After a lengthy exchange between Pacers staffer members, and the cameras caught Antetokounmpo running towards the Pacers locker room with a look of intense anger on his face, as he tried to get his ball back. It appeared that someone standing in the tunnel said something disrespectful to him, which incited the situation even more.

The cameras did not show what happened next, or if security stopped him before he got there, but the scene was a dramatic end to a heated game. Later Giannis returned to court, and seemed to be telling Tyrese Haliburton to meet him out back. He wanted all the smoke, word to Draymond Green.

What Made a Pacers Steal Giannis Antetokounmpo’s Game Ball?

You’re probably wondering why the Pacers would be so petty as to take Giannis’ game ball on a 64 point night. The answer may be an incident earlier in the game involving another star player. In the first quarter Giannis Antetokounmpo dunked on Tyrese Haliburton then bumped him to the ground. It was a super disrespectful Shaq on David Robinson type of move.

Is it possible that Pacers remembered this play when the game was over, and took Giannis’ game ball in retaliation?

The game was personal for both teams, as they had a history of rivalry and animosity. The Pacers had defeated the Bucks in the In season tournament earlier, and had taunted and trash-talked Antetokounmpo and Lillard throughout the game. Haliburton even mocked Dame’s watch taunt. Antetokounmpo responded with a dominant performance, scoring from all angles and leading his team to a win in historic fashion on this night of revenge.

The game ball incident added more fuel to the fire, and showed how much Antetokounmpo cared about his achievement and his team. The Pacers were clearly in the wrong, as they should have respected Antetokounmpo’s request and given him the ball. The ball belonged to him, as he had earned it with his spectacular display of basketball.

However, considering how Giannis disrespected Tyrese Haliburton earlier in the game, it’s easy to see how that could have possibly led to the Pacers being extra petty. Hopefully Giannis got his game ball in the end.

Question now is will Giannis possibly get suspended for causing chaos? If it was Draymond Green, we all know he would get 30 games minimum for acting out like this.