Giannis Antetokounmpo gave himself an easy rebound in garbage time to ensure he got an official triple-double
AP Photo/Aaron Gash
- Giannis Antetokounmpo put up a triple-double against the Washington Wizards on Sunday.
- In order to secure the lofty stat, Giannis gave himself a cheeky little offensive rebound just before the buzzer.
- After the game, Antetokounmpo played coy about the slight stat-padding.
With just seconds to play on Sunday, the Milwaukee Bucks were in control against the Washington Wizards, leading 117-111.
After a missed three by the Wizards, Bucks big man Giannis Antetokounmpo came down with the rebound, all but securing the victory.
That rebound pushed Antetokounmpo's stat line on the night to 23 points, 13 assists, and nine rebounds, leaving him just one board shy of his fourth triple-double of the season.
As the waning seconds ticked away, Giannis drove the floor, and just as he reached the basket, lightly tossed a half-hearted shot against the backboard, and collected his own rebound.
The play was meaningless, but it did get Giannis an offensive rebound and thus, his triple-double, although it was an undeniably cheeky way to get there.
—SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 6, 2023
After the game, Giannis played coy about his final play.
"I was thinking about scoring the ball, but I feel like in those situations it's best to kind of keep the ball," Antetokounmpo said. "But yeah, I just try to play the game smart and kind of stole one."
Kind of stole one, indeed.
Antetokounmpo's play was ultimately meaningless, except for those who bet him to record a triple-double perhaps, but it did bring to mind some similar moments of past NBA games.
Back in 2003, Ricky Davis of the Cleveland Cavaliers intentionally missed a shot at his own basket in an effort to get himself to a triple-double.
—Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) March 6, 2023
Davis' stat-pad didn't end up counting, as shots at your own basket don't go towards stats, but the moment lasted long enough in the memories of basketball fans to get a shout out on Sunday.
—Taco Trey Kerby (@treykerby) March 6, 2023
—Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) March 6, 2023
—Hoop Fiends ???????? (@hoopfiends) March 6, 2023
While some argued that Giannis' final rebound should be stricken from the official scoring of the game, the rebound still stood, as of Monday afternoon.