November 4th - In an NBA regular season game, the Bucks defeated the Pacers 117-115 on the road.
After the game, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers criticized the inconsistent calls by referees regarding fouls committed by Giannis Antetokounmpo.
"Yes, the latest argument is that (in the final possession) it should have been a foul, that's the latest argument," Rivers said. "There were many times in the game where Giannis drove to the basket and got completely knocked down. I mean, you can watch the video, he was completely knocked down, and the referees didn't call anything. It's surprising how the referees called Giannis differently after he was knocked down."
"One of the referees even said, 'Yeah, they were hitting his arm, but he was taking the contact and continuing to play.' I said, 'Okay, but that's still a foul!'" Rivers said.
“Giannis is strong enough to withstand contact and keep playing. While that doesn’t stop him, it’s still a foul. I think he got fouled so many times, and the last possession was what angered me the most. Some people complain that Shai (Giljes Alexander) pushes people on drives, right? But today, Siakam used his forearm to push someone away, right in front of the referee; he was practically challenging the referee,” Rivers said.
“Our officiating needs to be consistent. A good example is that if Giannis did what Siakam did, it would be an offensive foul. So, I didn’t like the way the officiating was done in this game. Look, Giannis was practically getting beaten to a pulp on the court, and there were no calls. I think the officiating he received was wrong, I understand, it’s tough, it’s like guarding a faster Shaquille O’Neal. So, it’s brutal. I can say that if they called fouls on those kinds of moves every time, the opponent would stop fouling, that’s always been my answer,” Rivers said.
