Tyrese Haliburton’s dad offers heartfelt apology to Giannis Antetokounmpo after ugly postgame spat

Tyrese Haliburton's father, John Haliburton, got into a heated confrontation on Tuesday with Giannis Antetokounmpo. Following the Indiana Pacers’ thrilling come-from-behind 119-118 overtime win, the elder Haliburton waved a towel at the two-time MVP, who showed restraint.

Antetokounmpo said in the postgame interview that the elder Haliburton “disrespected” him by cursing at him.

A few hours after the game, John penned an apology note on X (formerly Twitter).

“I sincerely apologize to Giannis, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Pacers organization for my actions following tonight's game," he wrote. "This was not a good reflection on our sport or my son and I will not make that mistake again.”

According to Giannis Antetokounmpo, John Haliburton mocked him by saying:

“This is what we do. This is what we effing do. This is what the eff we do.”

For the Bucks’ franchise cornerstone, who initially thought John was just a fan, he understood the celebration. The Greek Freak added that he was happy for the dad but would not tolerate the disrespect. Antetokounmpo brought up his late father, who he said would never show disrespect to anyone, regardless of the situation.

Tyrese Haliburton said in the postgame interview that his father “was not in the right.” The point guard added that he will talk to Antetokounmpo about the incident and promised to do the same with his father. John’s apology likely came after having a conversation with the Indiana Pacers star.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo insists winning is not the green light to disrespect someone

Giannis Antetokounmpo could not escape questions about his confrontation with Tyrese Haliburton’s father. When asked about the incident, he started the lengthy response with this:

“I believe in being humble in victory. … Now, there are a lot of people out there that can say, “No. When you win, you gotta talk s**t. It’s a green light for you to be disrespectful towards somebody else.” I disagree.”

Antetokounmpo added that when the Milwaukee Bucks won the championship in 2021, his mother was even “scared” to celebrate on the court. He could not reconcile that with the actions of John Haliburton.

The Bucks have now lost in the first round of the past two postseasons to the Pacers. The controversial confrontation only added a layer to the brewing rivalry. Although Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Haliburtons seemed ready to move past the spat, the incident will likely loom over the next Bucks-Pacers showdown.