Giannis Antetokounmpo has Ben Simmons to thank for his monster night.
After scoring a career-high 52 points in a 130-125 loss to the 76ers on Sunday, Antetokounmpo said he was grateful to have Simmons guarding him during the game. The Greek Freak explained that he preferred it opposed to someone like Joel Embiid.
“It’s easy,” Antetokounmpo said when asked about going up against Simmons. “I’d rather have Ben guard me than Joel, it’s simple. If Joel is guarding me all night, everything is so tough for you. But when someone else switches, whether it’s Jimmy [Butler] or Ben or [Mike] Scott or [Boban] Marjanovic, it’s way easier and you just try to seize the opportunity and make a play.”
It’s a spicy zing from Antetokounmpo, who added 16 rebounds and seven assists, considering the two had their moments on back-to-back dunks late in the fourth quarter. With the Bucks down seven, Antetokounmpo backed Simmons deep in the post before throwing a hard one-handed dunk on him and grabbing a foul.
Antetokounmpo stared down Simmons and was caught mouthing “Baby! He’s a f—king baby!” by the camera.
But just a possession later, Simmons, who finished with eight points, nine rebounds and nine assists, got his revenge with a putback slam on top of Antetokounmpo, where he decided to scream right in front of Antetokounmpo’s face.
Lost in the fireworks was an important win against the Eastern Conference leaders, courtesy of Embiid’s 40 points and 15 rebounds.
