Report: Nets told to ditch timer mocking Giannis Antetokounmpo's long free-throw routine
The timer the Brooklyn Nets have been using to mock Giannis Antetokounmpo's long free-throw routine is gone, and it's not coming back.
According to the New York Post, the NBA told the Nets to stop displaying a timer on the scoreboard when Antetokounmpo is attempting free throws, which they did during Game 1 against the Milwaukee Bucks. The NBA doesn't want teams "inciting" their fans to taunt opposing players, and the timer definitely did that.
Here's a look at the timer in action, and the fans' reaction.
Here’s a look at the Barclays Center Jumbotron timer while Giannis Antetokounmpo is at the foul line. pic.twitter.com/NGwznPQeaU
— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) June 6, 2021
Giannis missed both free throws. I think the countdown timer works. 🤔 pic.twitter.com/kIKKsjc8cl
— BKN3👌🏿 O✭G✭ N✭E✭T✭S✭ (@TheBKN3) June 6, 2021
Antetokounmpo's free-throw routine commonly takes at least 10 seconds, which is a violation of the NBA's free-throw rule. Players are supposed to shoot their free throw within 10 seconds of getting the ball from the referee. When the timer at the Barclays Center got beyond 10, the numbers turned from white to red.
The timer wasn't just to get in Antetokounmpo's head, but also to show the referees when he'd gone past 10 seconds. He didn't make any of his three free throws in Game 1, and the New York Post reported that two of his attempts took longer than 10 seconds. The referees didn't call him for a rules violation.
Fans at Barclays are timing Giannis anyway
The timer appeared for just one game at the Barclays Center, but that's all it took to become firmly entrenched in the hearts and minds of Nets fans.
It didn't show up on screen at all in Game 2, but that didn't stop fans — specifically a group called the Brooklyn Brigade, according to the New York Post — from timing Antetokounmpo's free-throw attempts.
the free throw countdown count is iconic!! (sound on) @BrooklynBrigade @BrooklynNets pic.twitter.com/PdZxyWphaF
— G_Loading ❄️ (@_gabewilliams) June 8, 2021
Antetokounmpo made just two of his seven free throws in Game 2.
The timer may be gone, but it lives on through Nets fans forever — or at least until the end of the series.
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