Report: Giannis Antetokounmpo's 10th Rebound for Triple-Double Rescinded by NBA
Giannis Antetokounmpo's triple-double from Sunday's 117-111 win over the Washington Wizards is no more.
The Milwaukee Bucks star finished with 23 points, 13 assists, 10 rebounds and three blocks, but ESPN's Zach Lowe reported Monday that the NBA has rescinded his final board that notched the triple-double.
Antetokounmpo was dribbling out the final seconds of the game and was one rebound shy of a triple-double, so he decided to throw a rebound to himself off the backboard. However, Lowe noted NBA rules state a shot attempt only counts if the player shoots "with intent to score a field goal."
"I was thinking about scoring the ball, but I feel like in those situations it's best to kind of keep the ball," Antetokounmpo told reporters. "But yeah, I just try to play the game smart and kind of stole one."
The effort brought to mind the failed 2003 attempt by Cleveland Cavaliers guard Ricky Davis to secure a triple-double in similar fashion.
Davis was one rebound shy of a triple-double in a blowout win and threw the ball off the rim on his team's own basket while dribbling out the clock. As Jack Maloney of CBS Sports noted, it did not count as an attempt since it was on Cleveland's basket, and Davis was also shoved by DeShawn Stevenson and criticized by Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan for the attempt.
Antetokounmpo's play didn't generate the same type of backlash, although he no longer has the triple-double to his credit in the MVP race.
He is still averaging 31.2 points, 11.9 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game for a Bucks team that is in championship-or-bust mode after going 17-1 in its last 18 games.
Milwaukee is 1.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics in the race for the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed in large part because of the seven-time All-Star's brilliance. The two contenders have one matchup remaining this season on March 30 after splitting the first two.
A triple-double in that one would be much more meaningful to the Bucks' championship chances than the one Antetokounmpo missed out on in Sunday's win over Washington.
