LAS VEGAS (AP) — Diving for loose balls. Blocking dunk attempts. Getting tackled by airborne teammates. Giannis Antetokounmpo had a very eventful final few minutes of the NBA Cup semifinals.
He shrugged it all off, too.
“I just tried to compete,” Antetokounmpo said.
That he did — and that's why he and the Milwaukee Bucks will be competing for the NBA Cup on Tuesday night.
A brilliant stat line for the two-time MVP and current NBA scoring leader — 32 points, 14 rebounds, nine assists, four blocks — carried the Bucks to a 110-102 win over the Atlanta Hawks in the NBA Cup semifinals on Saturday.
But it was two big plays in the final minutes — diving on the floor to help create a turnover with 6:35 left, then blocking Clint Capela's dunk try at the rim four minutes later — that helped ensure the Bucks would be playing for the title.
“Winning plays,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “We never show film after a game, and we showed the winning plays today. It takes what it takes. I wish you could script what it takes.”
If there was any question as to whether the NBA Cup matters to the Bucks, and to a generational player like Antetokounmpo — he of the $49 million salary this season, already the holder of a championship ring and a member of the NBA's 75th anniversary team — there were emphatic answers on Saturday.
He subbed in for his final shift with 8:17 left and many of those big plays, the “winning plays” Rivers referenced, down the stretch had his fingerprints all over them. Antetokounmpo's lob that Brook Lopez swatted in with his left hand came about a minute into that final stint, a play that put the Bucks up for good in what had been a back-and-forth final quarter to that point.
He dove at Jalen Johnson's feet to create a turnover not long afterward, then had an assist on Andre Jackson Jr.'s 3-pointer that put Milwaukee up 94-90 on the ensuing possession. And the capper was with 2:35 left, when the Hawks threw a lob to Capela — and not only did Antetokounmpo block the dunk try, he did so while Lopez barreled into his teammate's side and knocked him to the court.
“Just got to keep on doing things to help your team win,” Antetokounmpo said. “Sometimes it’s going to be a block, sometimes it’s going to be a shot, sometimes it’s going to be a pass. It doesn’t matter what it is. What matters is just being able to be selfless, sacrifice your body, your own ambitions, goals, to help your team win.”
And because that's what he did, a chance at the NBA Cup awaits.
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Atlanta Hawks' Dyson Daniels (5) defends as Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo shoots during a semifinal game in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Kyle Terada/Pool Photo via AP)
Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) collide while diving for the ball during the second half of a semifinal game in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The chances were there for the Hawks to continue their unanticipated run in the NBA Cup and make Tuesday night's final.
Just 12 strong minutes were what Atlanta needed.
But that's when the Hawks' offense abandoned itself, scoring only 19 points in the fourth quarter of Saturday's 110-102 semifinal loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Hawks were not only outscored by nine points in the fourth quarter, but they made just 5 of 16 shots and missed six of their final seven attempts.
“I know there were a few that were really good shots and we had to work for them,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. "That said, I think we know whatever that is — it could be on the margins — there are certain things that we need to do better.
“But I think for us (just) to put ourselves in that situation, given we didn’t really make shots during the course of the game, either. I think the storyline for me is just how we competed.”
The Hawks made it to Las Vegas by going 3-1 in group play — including a 117-116 victory over reigning champion Boston — and then winning at New York 108-100 in a quarterfinal on Wednesday.
After finishing off the Knicks, Trae Young pretended to roll dice on the Madison Square Garden midcourt.
There would be no such celebration in the nation's gambling capital, even with a sizeable Hawks crowd behind them.
But that doesn't mean the Hawks didn't take a lot from the experience as they try to show the Eastern Conference doesn't just belong to the Celtics, Knicks and the 22-4 Cavaliers — a team Atlanta also defeated in group play.
“I think what we have done in this Cup was really, really special,” said Young, who came close to his fourth career triple-double with 35 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. “I think we’ve really found the way we want to play and figured out the tempo we want to play at and things like that.”
“I feel like this Cup was really good for us. For a young team to go as far as we did, we can really use this as hopefully momentum going into the rest of the season.”
But Young lamented the missed opportunities in the fourth quarter that could have made the NBA Cup even more meaningful.
“We showed throughout this whole Cup that we belong,” said Jalen Johnson, who totaled 15 points and 10 rebounds. "We can compete with the best of them. Unfortunately, today we came up short. It’s just going to give us a lot to learn from moving forward. Especially down the stretch in those last five, six minutes, I’ve definitely got to be better.
“Just as a team, we’ve got a lot of room to grow, but I’m proud of everybody. We defeated a lot of odds coming in, making it all the way to Vegas. There’s nothing to hang our heads about. We’ve just got to keep moving in the right direction.”
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Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young reacts after missing a 3-point basket during the second half of a semifinal game against the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young looks to shoot during the first half of a semifinal game against the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young looks to shoot during the first half of a semifinal game against the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)
Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) drives past Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. (5) during the first half of a semifinal game in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)
