Clear implication for the referees of the game with them Lakers left o John Antetokounmpo.
In his statements after Bucks loss (124-118)the “Greek Freak” seemed annoyed that he wasn’t given one foul in the last phase of the regular season.
So being asked about what happened in his duel with Anthony Davischaracteristically replied:
“I don’t know…Chris threw the ball, I went to get it…I don’t want to get penalized…I went to get the ball and for some reason I didn’t make it and that’s not the end of the game. I just didn’t catch the ball. Chris made a great pass, but for some reason I was off balance, I don’t know why, I have to see the phase.”
Antetokounmpo’s other statements in detail
About what happened in the match: “At the beginning of the match we were moving the ball around, everyone was involved in the attack. In the last minutes we shot after a pass, we played a lot one on one. I don’t think we did it on purpose. I think the Lakers played good turnover defense and made us go one-on-one. We didn’t move the ball like that and when you do that it’s hard to win.”
On how he tries to find balance offensively with Lillard and Middleton when all three want the ball: “I’m just trying to play basketball. Obviously we have players who can put in shots or create phases. There will be times when Middleton wants the ball and others when Lillard wants it. We just have to read the game and find a way to match up.”
On a Reaves 3-pointer in the second overtime that was free and the Bucks’ defense: “We didn’t do a good job. Sometimes we were ahead by 2-3 points and we didn’t play good defense, we fouled them or they found a three-pointer. We have to find ways to finish games. We had 4-5 chances to finish the game with one defense and we didn’t do it. At this stage they escaped with three points with this hat-trick. This changes the momentum. We were in the second overtime, everyone was tired and he hit a big shot, taking the momentum.”
On whether the game with the Lakers revealed some things that the Bucks need to work on before the playoffs: “Yes, there are definitely many things we need to improve. We have to keep improving. It was a good game for us.
We have to look at that game again, learn from it, see why we didn’t make some saves or the ball wasn’t moving, why we missed some 50-50 balls, some missed defensive rebounds. We have to see them. There are many things we need to improve and we will.”
For Rivers’ remark that the Bucks should have gone from +18 in the first half to +30 and if it was a matter of concentration: “I think it’s a combination of not being 100% focused, but also a bit of luck on some shots. But I think we lost the third quarter by a small margin, we were ahead by 15-16 points. But we can do better. I think that if we had set the tone in the first 4-5 minutes of the third period it would have been a different match. But we didn’t do it, they made some shots, they got rebounds, they made three-pointers, some nails, the difference fell to 8 points and it was another match now”.
On the appearance of Anthony Davis and the big phases that the star of the Lakers pulled out: “He has been in the league for many years. He has been great throughout his career, offensively and defensively. He always helps his team. What makes him special is that he is a two-way player. He can score, help his team by putting them in the right position in attack, while defensively he is very good. He cuts balls, he gets rebounds, he does everything. It’s always a challenge to face him. He’s been great throughout his career.”
Source: Sport Fm
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