The Boston Celtics were trailing the Milwaukee Bucks by 10 points in the second quarter when Giannis Antetokounpo swung his elbow right into Jaylen Brown’s head.
After Antetokounmpo was called for an offensive foul, the two star players made their way up the court.
But that’s not the end of the story.
Antetokounmpo put his hand out to the Celtics star as if to say, “My bad,” but as Brown went to acknowledge the gesture by slapping his hand, Antetokounmpo withdrew his hand at the last second in a typical “got ya” move and smiled.
The Bucks star may have bested Brown with the childless prank, but Brown and the Celtics got the last laugh.
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The Celtics trailed the Bucks by as many as 17 points in the game, but Boston stormed back in the second half and defeated Milwaukee 113-107 to improve to 9-2 on the season.
After the game, Brown called Antetokounmpo a “child” when he spoke with the media. The Bucks forward was taken aback by Brown’s comment.
“That’s what he said? Dang,” Antetokounmpo said, according to 97.3 The Game. “… It’s who I am. I play the game with fun, joy. I mess around so I can stay young myself. … At the end of the day, I think he’s an incredible player. He always does the right thing to help his team win. But, I’m just going to continue to be me. At the end of the day, if I’m called a child, so be it. “
He added with a smile, “If I had another opportunity, I’d do it again.”
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Chances are Brown won’t fall for it twice.
The Celtics defeated the Bucks in October for their fourth straight win to begin the season. The two clubs won’t meet again in the regular season and appear to be heading in different directions. The Bucks fell to 2-8 after dropping Sunday’s matchup to the Celtics, so a postseason matchup seems unlikely — right now.
Featured image via Benny Sieu/Imagn Images