Milwaukee Bucks superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo couldn’t hold onto his playoffs grudge for too long during NBA All-Star Weekend 2023.
While joking with Boston Celtics superstar forward Jayson Tatum backstage at the weekend’s festivities, their 2022 Eastern Conference semifinals bout came up in conversation.
Tatum’s Celtics sent Antetokounmpo’s Bucks home in a 4-3 series decision, which the latter certainly brought up in conversation.
Tatum lobbied to be picked first by Antetokounmpo for his NBA All-Star team’s starters in the draft, which the “Greek Freak” immediately swatted down with a faux-playoff grudge.
Of course, Antetokounmpo still picked Tatum first when it came time for the Bucks standout to pick his starters for the All-Star Game.
Before the NBA All-Star Draft:
Giannis Antetokounmpo: “[Jayson Tatum] sent me home last year, what you guys think, you guys think i’m gonna pick him? Hell nah!”
Giannis then went to select Jayson Tatum with his 1st pick of the All-Star starters 🤣pic.twitter.com/50dE91qTqY
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) February 22, 2023
While we often think of these guys as competitors first, Antetokounmpo and Tatum clearly look like off-court friends who couldn’t resist an opportunity to mess with each other during the NBA’s laid-back All-Star celebration.
Of course, they might not be quite as friendly if the Bucks and Celtics meet again in the playoffs, we doubt it’ll carry over too much further than that.