Feb 25, 2025, 11:59 PM ET
HOUSTON — Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo said he has “no hard feelings” toward Amen Thompson after the Houston Rockets forward was ejected for pulling him down from behind by his head and neck Tuesday night.
The Bucks were down by two with about 4½ minutes left when Thompson committed the foul as Antetokounmpo went up for a shot in the lane. The play was reviewed and determined to be a flagrant foul 2, and Thompson was ejected.
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Houston went on to a 100-97 victory, snapping Milwaukee’s four-game winning streak.
“At the end of the day like you don’t wanna to have a league that’s soft,” Antetokounmpo said when asked about the play. “I love guys that play hard. I love guys that they’re great competitors.”
“I’m one of those guys. Sometimes your competitive nature gets in the way (of) making the best decision, the best judgment at the time. And I feel like he wanted to make it a hard foul, but he grabbed my neck. But there’s no hard feelings.”
Thompson didn’t speak to reporters after the game.
Amen Thompson’s ejection from Tuesday night’s Bucks-Rockets clash came as the result of “contact to the head (that) was both unnecessary and excessive,” per the pool report from crew chief Tony Brothers. Alex Slitz/Getty Images
Both Houston coach Ime Udoka and Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers agreed that Thompson should have been ejected for the foul.
Crew chief Tony Brothers explained the decision to eject Thompson to a pool reporter after the game.
“Because the contact to the head was both unnecessary and excessive and by rule that’s a flagrant foul penalty two,” he said.
It’s the second ejection this season for Thompson, who was also tossed in a December game against the Miami Heat after throwing guard Tyler Herro to the floor. The incident triggered an altercation between the teams that led to the ejections of six players and staff members.
Thompson, the fourth overall pick in the 2023 draft, was suspended two games for his actions in that skirmish.
