Jayson Tatum on Sunday delivered 31 points and 12 rebounds to spark the reigning NBA champions Boston Celtics over Milwaukee 113-107 despite Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 43-point performance for the Bucks.
The Celtics improved to 9-2, two games behind the unbeaten Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference, while the host Bucks slid to 2-8.
Payton Pritchard scored 18 points off the Boston bench while Derrick White and former Buck Jrue Holiday each scored 15 points and Jaylen Brown added 14 for the Celtics.
Photo: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images / USA Today
“Team effort,” Holiday said. “It’s not easy doing it by yourself. We did it collectively.”
Greek star Antetokounmpo also grabbed 13 rebounds. In the second period, he appeared to inadvertently elbow Brown to the floor, resulting in an offensive foul against the two-time Most Valuable Player.
As they headed back up the floor, Antetokounmpo held out his hand toward Brown, only to pull it back over the top of his face while smiling at him. Antetokounmpo then reached out his hand again, but the Celtics’ three-time All-Star looked down without reciprocating.
“Giannis is a child,” Brown said afterward. “I’m just focused on helping my team get a win, and that’s what we did tonight.”
Antetokounmpo said he was just joking.
“We’re playing basketball. At the same time, we’ve got to have fun when we play,” he said.
“I think we’re always trying to joke around within the flow of the game. It’s something I do with my kids when we play around. Sometimes, I’m like: ‘Give me a high five. Oh, you’re too slow.’ I just did it. I enjoyed it, though. It was fun,” he added.
When Antetokounmpo was told about Brown’s post-game comment, the forward praised Brown as “an incredible player,” while defending his actions.
“At the end of the day, if I’m called a child, so be it. I have three children of my own and I think six nieces. I take care of a lot of kids around here. Sometimes when you’re around a kid, you try to act like a kid. It’s fun. It’s fun to be around them. So I just try to go out there and have fun. Again, great player, great competitor. If I have another opportunity, I’ll do it again.”
In a showdown of Western Conference contenders, Golden State’s Stephen Curry scored 36 points, hitting 7-of-13 three-pointers, to lead the Warriors in a 127-116 victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder that left both clubs 8-2.
In another late thriller, Michael Porter’s basket with 6.1 seconds remaining gave the Denver Nuggets a 122-120 home victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
Three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic had a triple-double with 37 points, 18 rebounds and 15 assists to lead Denver while Kyrie Irving scored a game-high 43 points for the Mavericks.
Also producing a triple-double was LeBron James, who scored 19 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and 16 assists to spark the Los Angeles Lakers over the Toronto Raptors 123-103.
Elsewhere, the Phoenix Suns fell to 8-2 with a 127-118 overtime loss to the visiting Sacramento Kings, while the NBA-worst Philadelphia 76ers outlasted the visiting Charlotte Hornets for a 107-105 overtime victory, improving to 2-7 on the season.
The Miami Heat pipped the Minnesota Timberwolves 95-94, the Indiana Pacers beat the New York Knicks 132-121, the Orlando Magic routed the Washington Wizards 121-94, the Houston Rockets edged the Detroit Pistons 101-99 and the Memphis Grizzles mauled the Portland Trail Blazers 134-89.
Additional reporting by AP
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