Giannis Antetokounmpo had an up-and-down day on Saturday. The positives were that Knicks coach David Fizdale deemed him the best player in the NBA, and after that happened, Antetokounmpo went out and scored 33 points, pulled down 19 rebounds, doled out seven assists, and recorded three steals and two blocks against New York. The bad news was that the Knicks won in overtime, 136-134, and also, Mario Hezonja was the Allen Iverson to his Tyronn Lue.
Hezonja yammed all over the MVP candidate, then while Antetokounmpo was on the ground, the Knicks wing stepped over him. It was a hilarious disrespectful sequence out of Hezonja, who has always been known for having a certain swagger and cockiness to his game.
It was also something that, unsurprisingly, did not sit well with Antetokounmpo, who was asked about the incident after the game. The Bucks star was blunt, saying that if that ever happens again, Hezonja is getting punched below the belt.
Oh, Giannis is maaaaaaad 😬
(via @BenMallis)https://t.co/uvWMk9EQJb
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) December 2, 2018
Hezonja was asked about this, too, and he decided that he was going to try and throw a haymaker.
Hezonja on stepping over Antetokounmpo: Honestly, if you’re afraid, this is not for you. I don’t want to be disrespectful, but if you feel fear this is not the place for you, New York is not a place for you and this team is not a place for you. https://t.co/8j7hfo8I40
— Steve Popper (@StevePopper) December 2, 2018
Antetokounmpo getting dunked on and stepped over again seems like it’s a bit of a longshot, but if Hezonja is going to go for it again, the two teams have back-to-back matchups on Christmas and on Dec. 27. It’ll be fun to watch if Hezonja tries to get him again, or if there’s any lingering bad blood that makes its way to the surface between the two.
