The recent Indiana Pacers-Milwaukee Bucks matchup was a nail-biter. As the game approached its final seconds, it was Giannis Antetokounmpo’s squad that held a 114-111 lead. Even if a 3-pointer was made, the game would have gone into overtime. Then, Tyrese Haliburton pulled out a miracle. After catching the ball off the inbounds, the player attempted a running cover triple. Giannis attempted to contest his shot and thereby made contact. Due to this, Haliburton got the 3 points from his shot and drew a foul. The latter allowed the Pacers to extend their lead even further through free throws. For a casual viewer, it was all just a stroke of good luck. However, as the coach and the player revealed, it was not all luck. There was some planning and implementation, despite the 2x NBA All-Star’s objections.

During the post-game presser, Tyrese Haliburton touched base on his game-winning shot. The player made a major revelation by stating that “I tried to convince coach to let me switch sides, and they were like ‘No, run it the regular way’. Double A and Myles did a great job of causing confusion in the middle of the court, and I just kind of came off, got open. Andrew found me and, you know, just made the shot”. Yikes!

This means that if the coaches had not been too adamant that the player should follow their way, the Indiana Pacers could have recorded their 4th consecutive loss. Fortunately, that did not happen.

Haliburton’s revelation came around the same time Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle provided more details about the play that allowed the team to secure the win. Calling it the ‘Super Jenny Boucek flag football play’, he credited the former WNBA player and Pacers assistant coach for it. At the same time, he praised another Pacers assistant coach, Mike Weinar, for refining it and drawing it up.

The purpose of the play, as Carlisle highlighted, “you’re just hoping to create some confusion and get a look. And, Tyrese made great move to the ball, and there was momentum, and there was a foul. So, you know very special set of circumstances. Very fortunate”.

Luck certainly played a factor in ensuring that the ‘football play’ was run successfully. After all, as Haliburton revealed, “It was great to see it work. The first time we ever ran the play in training camp two years ago, I made the shot the same way. I haven’t got the ball since. I usually hate running the play.” Well, you could say that the coaches may not have given the shot to the right person.

However, the ball did go in and the foul was called, wasn’t it? Therefore, there is no room for second-guessing things now. The only person who needs to second-guess things is the one over whom the shot was made.

Giannis Antetokounmpo regrets fouling Tyrese Haliburton during ‘football play’: “Maybe I should have taken a step back”

‘The Greek Freak’ was made the target for the ‘football play’. Therefore, it made sense that he would be questioned about it by the media. Following the matchup at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Giannis Antetokounmpo recalled those final seconds from his perspective.

“I think there was a miscommunication on our coverage. He was able to get to the corner and knock down an incredible shot. Either you take a step back and let him shoot it, or you try to make it as tough as possible for him. Now that I think about it, maybe I should have taken a step back because if he had made it, we still go to overtime,” he revealed.

The Indiana Pacers made it clear that they still have some unknown tricks up the sleeve to pull out during crucial moments. It remains to be seen whether we see a return of the ‘football play’ in the coming games.