The NBA is pulling the rug out from underneath Giannis Antetokounmpo’s master plan.
The Milwaukee Bucks star Antetokounmpo had a hilariously blatant stat-padding moment during Sunday’s game against the Washington Wizards. In the closing seconds of the fourth quarter (with the game already decided), Antetokounmpo found himself just one rebound shy of a triple-double. As a result, he casually waltzed over to the basket and bounced the ball to himself off the backboard, thereby securing his tenth rebound (albeit in extremely cheap fashion).
You can see the funny video here.
But unfortunately for Antetokounmpo, the league wasn’t having any of his antics. Zach Lowe of ESPN reported Monday that the NBA had retroactively rescinded Antetokounmpo’s tenth rebound (and thus his triple-double). Lowe noted that, per NBA rules, a player must shoot with the “intent to score a field goal” in order for a field-goal attempt (and by extension, a rebound off that attempt) to count as official.
NBA Twitter personality Rob Perez previously mentioned that there was precedent for the NBA rescinding triple-doubles. The league also did so in 2004 when Atlanta Hawks guard Bob Sura intentionally missed a layup attempt in the closing seconds of a game for a tenth rebound to secure a triple-double.
This is not over. There is precedent for an overturn. We’ll see.https://t.co/kD5tjkElzL
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) March 6, 2023
The former NBA MVP Antetokounmpo is not necessarily starving for triple-doubles (he has already recorded 33 of them over his career). But this time around, he will be forced to settle for a mere double-double stat line of 23 points, nine rebounds, and 13 assists instead.
The Bucks defeated the Wizards 117-111 and have now won 17 of their last 18 games (giving them the NBA’s best record at 46-18). But on an individual basis, Antetokounmpo continues to find creative new ways to take Ls.
