NBA suspends Giannis Antetokounmpo over headbutting incident
MILWAUKEE - Giannis Antetokounmpo has been suspended for Milwaukee’s final game of the regular season, handed a one-game penalty Wednesday, Aug. 12 for headbutting Washington’s Moe Wagner.
It’s unknown if Antetokounmpo would have played in Thursday’s game against Memphis anyway, given that the Bucks have already secured the No. 1 overall seed in the NBA playoffs that start next week.
Antetokounmpo will be eligible for Game 1 of the Bucks’ first-round series against Brooklyn, which will almost certainly be played Monday or Tuesday at Walt Disney World.
The incident happened Tuesday night, when Wagner took a charge against Antetokounmpo in the second quarter. Antetokounmpo appeared to be speaking angrily, followed Wagner to the other end and the headbutt took place a few seconds later.
Antetokounmpo said after the game that the headbutt was a “terrible action” and that if he “could go back, turn back time and go back to that play, I wouldn’t do it.” He said he was frustrated by an accumulation of contact, on a night where he had already been awarded 12 free throws in his first 10 minutes of play.
Antetokounmpo was ejected from the game for the Flagrant-2 foul. He finishes the regular season with averages of 29.5 points, 13.6 rebounds and 5.6 assists, numbers that are likely good enough to win him a second consecutive NBA MVP award.
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Watch: Giannis Antetokounmpo ejected for headbutting Wizards player
Moritz Wagner took a charge from Giannis Antetokounmpo, who didn’t like the call in what had become a physical game.