Giannis Antetokounmpo nearly killed Aron Baynes

Dan Devine
·Senior NBA writer
Jeeeeeeez, Giannis Antetokounmpo. (Screencap by @Jose3030)
Jeeeeeeez, Giannis Antetokounmpo. (Screencap by @Jose3030)

As impressive as Giannis Antetokounmpo has been to start the 2017-18 NBA season, leading the league in scoring while also averaging nearly 11 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game through his first four outings, you might have found yourself wondering what the Milwaukee Bucks superstar had in mind to raise the bar during Thursday’s TNT matchup with the Boston Celtics. Well, late in the first quarter, we found out: he wanted to try to end a man’s existence on national television.

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With the seconds ticking down in the opening quarter, and the Celtics holding a seven-point lead, “The Greek Freak” drove left around a screen from guard Matthew Dellavedova, built up a head of steam, took off from one stride inside the free-throw line, and basically tried to erase all trace of Aron Baynes from our collective memory banks. The bruising Australian center, never one to back down from a challenge, leapt to try to block Antetokounmpo’s dunk in the air.

That decision was very nearly cataclysmic.

Baynes took the brunt of the contact, going down extremely hard on the new-old court at the MECCA in Milwaukee on this particular throwback Thursday. For his bravery — or stupidity, depending on how you look at it — he was charged with a foul.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo got two free throws out of attempted homicide. He made them both.

And here’s where he think all the way back to eight nights ago, when Giannis finished a skyscraping alley-oop all over the Celtics big man’s entire aura, and we find ourselves asking: what, exactly, did Aron Baynes do to Giannis Antetokounmpo?!?!?

Whatever it was, Aron, you should probably just be the bigger man and apologize. This treatment just ain’t worth it, my dude.

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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!