Giannis Antetokounmpo said "we have to want it more" after his Bucks side wilted in the second half of a Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics; Every game in the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, as well as the NBA Finals, will be live on Sky Sports
Monday 16 May 2022 19:25, UK
Giannis Antetokounmpo admitted "it hurts" after his Milwaukee Bucks side wilted in the final quarter of a dramatic defeat in the NBA Playoffs to the Boston Celtics on Sunday.
One year after leading Milwaukee to the NBA title and being voted MVP, 'The Greek Freak' and the Bucks' hopes of back-to-back titles were ended as the Celtics won Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semi-finals 109-81.
Antetokounmpo scored 25 points with 20 rebounds and nine assists in all, but he shot 10 for 26 in the game, missing six of seven shots in the fourth quarter - four of them from inside of 6 feet.
"I'd rather miss a bunch of shots and keep playing, keep coming and keep being aggressive than go into passive mode," the Bucks star said.
Asked if his legs were heavy after playing a season-high 43 minutes, 9 seconds - including all of the second half until the game was out of reach, Antetokounmpo said: "Legs heavy. Body heavy. Mind heavy. Everything was heavy.
"I was just trying to be aggressive," he added. "At the end of the day, it's Game 7 and I'm not going to hold the ball and not look at the rim."
Antetokounmpo still had a series for the record books, recording a triple-double in Game 1 and missing one in the finale by a single assist. He scored 40 or more points three times, and had 20 rebounds twice.
Over the seven games, he averaged 29.6 points, 14.7 rebounds and 7.1 assists and is the first player in NBA history to record 200 points, 100 rebounds and 50 assists in a playoff series.
He said: "We realised, like, hey, we got to get better. We got to get better as a team. We got to want it more. We got to work on that game? So hopefully, like this moment, instead of thinking that we lost something, we can gain and learn in order for us to put ourselves in a position to win another championship, now it's going to be next year. It's going to be two years from now.
"It hurts. It kind of hurts not to win. But at the end of the day, the way my mom raised me, my dad raised me, I'm a good human being.
"I've got to wish (Jayson) Tatum and his team the best for them moving forward. I think they played great, was able to win the series and I wish the best of luck for him to continue playing great and leading his team to hopefully a championship.
"I think they're a great team, they have great chemistry and they have an opportunity to win one."
"The way Giannis evolved throughout this series, the way Giannis played against a very good defensive team, against a lot of good individual defenders, was like another one of those growth moments, growth opportunities," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said.
"I thought he was phenomenal. His scoring, his attacking, his playmaking, his unselfishness. I was beyond impressed."
