Getty Images Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns brings the ball up court against Jrue Holiday.
A crucial moment in Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks came on a free throw missed free throw by Giannis Antetokounmpo — which has become a common sight this postseason.
With less than 10 seconds left, Antetokounmpo used his massive wingspan to tip back his missed free throw into the hands of his Bucks teammate, Khris Middleton.
“He’s a freak of nature,” said Suns guard Devin Booker, who was close to grabbing the board. “He’s a different-sized dude. So he, even if he’s boxing out, getting a hand on it is tough. So, you just have to put a body on him.”
Giannis super smart to tip it out instead of catching it, the Suns would have fouled him right there.
Middleton made just 1-of-2, but it was enough to give the Bucks a four-point lead. Suns star Chris Paul voiced his frustration with the play in the postgame
“Everybody’s out there anticipating a miss, hell, even he is,” Paul said, referring to Antetokounmpo’s 56.8% mark at the charity stripe this postseason. “We got to keep trying to box out. And with his length, he tipped the ball up in the air, ain’t too much you can do.”
Postgame Moment From Press Conference Goes Viral
Booker did not know how to react after a stunning postgame press conference question about Paul. The question: “Obviously a really tough loss. Devin, how frustrated are you for Chris right now?”
Booker made a puzzled face before he responding: “Next question, please.”
Paul, Booker and the Suns are on the brink after losing to the Bucks at home on Saturday night, falling behind in the series 3-2. Booker scored 40 points and Paul rebounded from a bad game with 21 points, 11 assists and just one turnover. However, it wasn’t enough as Milwaukee erased an early deficit and came out with a 123-119 win.
“We knew this wasn’t going to be easy. We didn’t expect it to be. It’s hard,” Paul said. “Coach said it all year long, everything we want is on the other side of hard and it don’t get no harder than this. So, we got to regroup, learn from this game, but it’s over, we got to get ready for Game 6.”
Stinker of a Second Quarter Sinks Suns
The Suns were cruising early with a 37-21 first-quarter lead but let the Bucks back in with a miserable second quarter where they were outscored 43-24. It was all downhill from there, with Phoenix unable to grab the momentum back. Paul felt the lack of ball movement doomed the Suns.
“It definitely did, especially in that second quarter when I was out there — and we talk about it all season long — we have been a ball-movement team and sometimes the switching can cause you to do that,” Paul told reporters. “We exploit it at times and sometimes we don’t. We’ll go back and look at the film and see what we could have did better.
The Suns were the favorite on Saturday prior to the game, but the Bucks are now -400 to win the title, per The Action Network.
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Suns Star Throws Shade at Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo