NBA star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , a member of Canada's men's basketball team at the 2024 Olympics, was pushed back by Greece's Giannis Antetokounmpo during a postgame incident on Saturday. The scrap followed Canada's 86-79 win over Greece at the Paris Games.
Gilgeous-Alexander seemed infuriated with Greece player Giannoulis Larentzakis, jawing with the guard on the court after the final buzzer. As tensions escalated, Antetokounmpo moved onto the scene and shoved Gilgeous-Alexander aside.
According to Sportsnet , Gilgeous-Alexander acted in defense of his cousin and teammate, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, whom Larentzakis is said to have elbowed.
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“No. 5 bumped Nickeil after the whistle for no reason," Gilgeous-Alexander explained to reporters. "I just wanted to let him know we don’t play that. It was hashed out. It was cool.”
Gilgeous-Alexander and Antetokounmpo are the primary stars for their respective national teams at the 2024 Olympics . And they're MVP candidates in the NBA , where Gilgeous-Alexander competes for the Oklahoma City Thunder and Antetokounmpo leads the Milwaukee Bucks.
In Saturday's matchup at the Olympics, Gilgeous-Alexander scored 21 points and dished seven assists. He beat a double team before kissing in a floater off the glass to help clinch Canada's victory.
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Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo contributed 34 points in a losing effort for Greece, which still has a chance to advance to the knockout stage from Group A.
Canada men's basketball is considered one of the primary threats to Team USA in the chase for a gold medal this summer. Canada defeated Team USA in the third-place game at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, though the Americans trotted out a significantly less star-studded roster than the one sent to Paris.
The 2024 Team USA men's basketball Olympians include mega-stars such as Stephen Curry and LeBron James and are backed by strong defenders like Bam Adebayo and Derrick White.
“The rest of the world is trying to catch up," Adebayo told The Athletic of competition from Canada and others. "But you put a team like this together, and we play the right way, it’s gonna be hard to beat us. … I feel like you’re supposed to have that - respect people without giving them any respect.
"That’s a line we use in Heat Culture, man, because we respect every other country. But when we get between [those] lines, we’re trying to beat you by 40. We’re trying to make an example [out of you].”
If the Canada-Greece scrap is any indication, Team USA will need to figure out how to combat the physical aggression of other nations.
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