‘Giannis is a child:’ Jaylen Brown has no patience for Bucks’ star upon return after four-game absence

Jaylen Brown (7) was assessed a Flagrant 1 foul for using his forearms against the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo in the fourth quarter of the Celtics’ 113-107 win.Morry Gash/Associated Press

MILWAUKEE — Jaylen Brown’s return to the Celtics’ lineup after a four-game absence was filled with intrigue after separate incidents with Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo during Sunday’s 113-107 win.

A minute into the second period, Antetokounmpo picked up an offensive foul, swinging his elbow into the side of Brown’s head on a post-up. As the two players walked down the floor, Antetokounmpo appeared to give Brown a peace offering with a handshake. When Brown reached to slap hands with the Milwaukee forward, he pulled his hand back and started smiling.

Antetokounmpo then offered his hand again. Brown, who appeared irritated, did not flinch. He had already been fooled once.
“Giannis is a child,” Brown said. “I’m just focused on helping my team get a win and that’s what we did tonight.

Brown was assessed a Flagrant 1 foul in the fourth quarter after knocking down Antetokounmpo on a post-up with force with both forearms.

“It’s a joke,” Antetokounmpo said of the faux handshake. “We’re playing basketball. At the same time you’ve got to have fun while playing and I think he’s an incredible player. I think we always kind of joke around within the flow of the game. It’s something I do to my kids, you know, play around, ‘give you a high-five, oops, you’re too slow.’ I just did it. I enjoyed it though. It was fun.”

Regarding the injury, Brown told the Globe last week in Charlotte that he was scheduled to undergo a second MRI on the injury, which he said originated in training camp.

“I feel better today, I feel better physically,” Brown said. “Not all the way there yet, but I was able to throw my weight around and explode a little bit better. We’re getting there. It’s a long season. Taking care of your body is important.”

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said he was impressed with Brown’s performance, especially his defense on All-Star guard Damian Lillard.

“Poise, did a great job of honing in defensively on his matchup and just making things very difficult,” Mazzulla said. “To this point, he’s brought a playoff-level intensity defensively, taking his matchup personally. I thought offensively, when the ball went through him, he just made the right play for himself and for others.”

The center position also got healthier with the return of Luke Kornet, who missed two games with hamstring soreness. He recorded a rebound in five minutes.

Controversial non-call

Jayson Tatum rose up in front of the Bucks bench for a corner 3-points midway through the third quarter. As Tatum landed, his left ankle rolled over on the foot of Antetokounmpo, who lunged at him on the contest. Tatum laid on the floor for several moments until the Celtics stopped play with a timeout.
He walked to the bench slowly and remained in the game. Mazzulla was not happy with the lack of a foul call. Coincidently, Tatum was fouled attempting a 3-pointer moments later.

“That’s ridiculous,” Mazzulla said of the non-call. “You can’t miss that. You can’t miss that. He didn’t let it impact the rest of the game at either end of the floor. The refs did a great job. They knew that they missed it. Any time you can have that relationship with them and they saw it. You just move on. He’s hurt an ankle before and that could have gotten him [like] last time. But credit to him for handing it the right way.”

Tatum, who leads the NBA with four technical fouls, kept his poise and avoided any altercation or words for officials.

Jayson Tatum finished with 31 points to help the Celtics erase an early deficit in Sunday’s 113-107 win over the Bucks.Stacy Revere/Getty

“The coaches kind of calmed me down,” he said. “It’s a tough situation. I get my fair share of techs throughout the season, rightfully so. But it’s certain calls I feel like you can’t miss. The refs’ job is to protect the guys on the court, protect the shooter. That’s something I could have been out for six week

“For it to be a no call, let alone that didn’t get to even review it or look at it, then I lose my [expletive] and cuss somebody out, then I get a tech, it’s a like a double whammy. That’s [expletive] is frustrating when [all] you get is a ‘sorry we missed it.’ The ankle’s swollen and you’ve got to figure it out. I definitely was frustrated.”
Tatum has been durable throughout his career and finished the game without favoring the injury.

“I was able to play through it. It was sore,” he said. “Probably be a little more tomorrow.”