Former champion slams Giannis Antetokounmpo for 'weird' antics amid Bucks' struggles: "That's an offense for a slap"

Former NBA champion Matt Barnes was not impressed with Giannis Antetokounmpo's antics in the Milwaukee Bucks' loss to the Boston Celtics on Sunday night. Barnes said he'd slap Antetokounmpo if pulled off the things he did against the Celtics to him.

Speaking on a recent episode of the "All The Smoke" podcast, Barnes and Trevor Ariza discussed several topics including Giannis and the Bucks. "The Greek Freak" committed a landing spot foul on Jayson Tatum, elbowed Jaylen Brown and then jokingly faked a handshake on the reigning NBA Finals MVP.

Barnes was not amused by Antetokounmpo's antics, especially with the way the Bucks are playing this season. Milwaukee has the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference at 2-8.

"I'm not saying he intentionally went at Jayson Tatum's foot, but he's done it before," Barnes said. "No foul call, Jayson Tatum took offense to it, obviously. Said he needs to be protected, could have been out for a long time. Elbowing Jaylen Brown and then giving him the too fast or too slow (fake handshake). I'm just saying right now, someone did that to me, that's an offense for a slap." [0:39 - 1:00]

Matt Barnes added that it's not surprising to see Giannis Antetokounmpo's weird attitude. With the way the Milwaukee Bucks are playing this season, the two-time MVP might be going "crazy" since they were supposed to be one of the best teams in the NBA.

"This weird behavior isn't very surprising," Barnes said. "I mean, Giannis has a track record of doing some questionable stuff. If you look back, and obviously, I think the way this team has been playing, it might be driving him a little crazy."

The Bucks have an aging roster and they barely keep up with the young teams in the league. The two teams they beat this season, the Philadelphia 76ers and Utah Jazz, have an identical 2-7 record.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo responds to Jaylen Brown's comments

Giannis Antetokounmpo responds to Jaylen Brown's comments. (Photo: IMAGN)

Jaylen Brown called Giannis Antetokounmpo a "child" when asked about the fake handshake after the Boston Celtics' win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Antetokounmpo responded to Brown, saying that it's all just pure fun and will do it again.

"We always joke around with the flow of the game," Antetokounmpo said, according to Sports Illustrated. "It's something that I do to my kids, I play around. This is who I am. I play the game with fun, joy. ... I'm just gonna continue to be me and at the end of the day if I'm called the child so be it. If I have another opportunity I'll do it again."

The Bucks and Celtics will have one more game against each other this season on Dec. 6 at the TD Garden in Boston. It will be interesting to see if Giannis pulls off another fake handshake on Brown.