Giannis Antetokounmpo suggested the Indiana Pacers may have taken the game ball that should have come his way after his 64-point haul on Wednesday.
The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Pacers 140-126, with Antetokounmpo recording a franchise record in the process.
He surpassed the previous record haul for a Buck, set by Michael Redd in 2006. Antetokounmpo's previous career high was 55, set against the Washington Wizards in January.
However, Antetokounmpo was angered when the Pacers apparently took the game ball and headed for the locker room, and a scuffle then broke out.
And the 29-year-old is unsure whether the ball he received was actually the one used in the game.
"I have no idea. I'm not going to lie, I have no idea – I really don't know," he said.
"I have a ball but I don’t know if it’s the game ball. It doesn't feel like the game ball to me – it feels like a brand new ball.
"I played 35 minutes, I know how the game ball felt. The ball I have, which I'll take and I'll give it to my mum for sure, doesn't [feel like the game ball].
"But it's okay, life will continue. I've never seen this before. I don't know if I have the game ball.
"I know they [the Pistons] had the game ball. I don't think [that], I know."
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle claimed there had been a "misunderstanding" at the end of the game.
He said: "What happened after the game was unfortunate. There was a misunderstanding about the game ball.
"It was Oscar Tshiebwe's first official NBA point, so we always get the game ball. We were not thinking about Giannis' franchise record, so we grabbed the ball.
"A couple of minutes later, several of their players ended up in our hallway, and there was a big, I don't know what to call it – a fracas, melee, whatever. I don't think any punches were landed, but my general manager got elbowed in the ribs by one of their players."
Antetokounmpo added 14 rebounds, was 20 of 28 from the field in this one and went 24 of 32 on free throws.
"It's a great feeling. It’s a great feeling, being able to do it," Antetokounmpo said.
"As much as I can, I try to play basketball for the right reason, I try to play basketball to win, try to play basketball to help my teammates be great, but at the end of the day, being able to break this record in front of the fans here in this stadium, it's a great feeling, too."
Bucks coach Adrian Griffin said: "He's an unstoppable player. You can't guard him one-on-one. You've got some really good guys surrounding him, but at the end of the day, it's all him.
"His talent. His ability. His will. He has an incredible will to win, and he'll do whatever it takes to win. I'm just coaching the game and one of the coaches told me, 'Yeah, Giannis has 50. I had no idea.' But wow, what a great performance."
Kerr demands improvements from Team USA as Olympic opener looms
United States coach Steve Kerr wants to see higher levels of intensity from his team as their Olympics campaign approaches.
Kerr was unhappy with the lacklustre displays from his side in their warm-ups against Germany and South Sudan.
Germany led 71-68 at the end of the third quarter before LeBron James conjured up 11 points in the final four minutes to give the USA a 92-88 win, while South Sudan were 20 seconds away from pulling off one of the biggest shocks in basketball history, before eventually falling to a 101-100 loss.
The USA face a dangerous Serbia side featuring reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic on Sunday, and Kerr is adamant that improvements are required if they are to win a fifth consecutive Olympic gold medal.
He said: "It's got to be 40 minutes of force and attention and focus, and we can't let teams outplay us effort and energy-wise like we did the other night against Germany, like we did against South Sudan.
“We have another level. I think we have another two levels that we can get to, but it's a collaboration, always.
"We can show them, 'Let's do this, let's do that. Let's learn personnel.'
"We got to know the shooters, know the non-shooters, all that stuff. So that's where we can help them. Where they can help themselves is just effort and energy play after play, after play. This is different."
Kerr is a four-time NBA champion as a coach, and was part of the triumphant Olympics team in Tokyo in 2021, but the Golden State Warriors boss knows the experience of the Games will only be enhanced if the USA were to come out on top again.
"This should be one of the great experiences of our lives. But the best way to make it an incredible experience is to win a gold medal," he said.
After facing Serbia, the USA will once again go up against South Sudan, this time in a competitive format, before ending the group stage with a match against Puerto Rico.
Durant warns Team USA 'everybody is a contender' in Olympic basketball tournament
Kevin Durant has warned Team USA they will not have an easy ride through the basketball tournament at the Paris Olympic Games, declaring: "Everybody is a contender".
The United States will go in search of a fifth straight men's basketball gold in the French capital, where they open their Group C campaign against Serbia on Sunday.
After that meeting with Nikola Jokic and company, the star-studded USA team featuring Durant, LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid and a host of other NBA stars take on South Sudan and Puerto Rico.
With Steve Kerr having so much talent at his disposal, the roster has been compared to that of the 1992 'Dream Team', who took gold in Barcelona behind the efforts of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen and other great names.
However, at a press conference ahead of Team USA's 2024 opener, Curry reminded reporters that the class of 1992 only faced nine other active NBA players.
Durant is expecting a much tougher assignment this year, responding to Curry by saying: "Everybody is a contender. Everyone is here for a reason.
"We're playing against 65 or 64 NBA players in Paris. So you know they're the best in the world."
Asked to identify the main players to watch from other nations, the Phoenix Suns forward said: "Giannis [Antetokounmpo] or Jokic."
While Durant adopted a cautious tone, Golden State Warriors star Curry was more bullish regarding the USA's gold medal hopes.
Quizzed on who he was most excited about facing, Curry simply said: "Whoever's in the gold medal game."
Knicks, head coach Thibodeau agree to three-year contract extension
The New York Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau have agreed to a three-year contract extension through the 2027-28 season.
New York went 50-32 last season to earn the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference before losing to the Indiana Pacers in the semi-finals of the play-offs.
The Knicks were also ousted in the East semis in 2022-23 and reached the play-offs during Thibodeau’s first season in 2021-22, when he won his second NBA Coach of the Year award.
Prior to 2021-22, New York’s previous post-season appearance came in 2013.
The Knicks have gone 175-143 over the last four seasons under Thibodeau, who earned his first NBA Coach of the Year award in 2011 as a rookie head coach with the Chicago Bulls.
The 66-year-old Thibodeau owns a 527-389 record in 12 seasons as a head coach with Chicago, the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York.
His teams have gone 38-47 in the post-season, and Thibodeau’s only appearance in the conference finals came in his rookie head coach season.
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