76ers' Dwight Howard wanted to 'Stone Cold Stunner' Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo after sit-down celebration

Jordan Greer

•
76ers' Dwight Howard wanted to 'Stone Cold Stunner' Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo after sit-down celebration image

If you would like to see a two-time MVP battle a three-time Defensive Player of the Year for the WWE championship, give me a hell yeah!

Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo drew the ire of 76ers center Dwight Howard on Wednesday night during Milwaukee's 109-105 overtime win. With just over a minute to go in the extra period, Antetokounmpo lost Howard with a behind-the-back move and drained a midrange jumper to help the Bucks, as ESPN's Mark Jones put it, "turn out the lights" on the 76ers.

MORE: How long is Joel Embiid out?

Antetokounmpo, who scored 10 of his game-high 32 points in overtime, then decided to take a seat on the Wells Fargo Center floor.

The fans in attendance didn't appreciate the gesture, and neither did Howard. The veteran big man told reporters that he wanted to hit Antetokounmpo with "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's signature finisher.

"I wanted to go and 'Stone Cold Stunner' him, but I had already gotten one [technical foul]," Howard said after the game. "It's basketball. He wanted to have fun, but you know, we'll see these guys again. We don't want to make a big scene about what he did. But today we allowed them to get back in the game. So, what he did, we can't control that.

"But he had a hell of game. He made some tough shots at the end of the game, reigning MVP. And he had a great game. I'm not one to talk trash or say anything negative, but we'll see them again, and it'll be a different result."

When he was told that Howard had noticed the sit-down celebration, Antetokounmpo explained that he was simply enjoying the moment.

"Is there something wrong with having fun? I don't think there's anything wrong with having fun," Antetokounmpo said. "I just like to have fun. In the first half, I was not having fun. I kind of talked to myself in the half, and I said, 'No matter what the outcome of the game is, you cannot forget what you're here to do, which is have fun.' Obviously there's gonna be times that I exaggerate, but I don't want to take anything back because I wasn't thinking about I'm going to sit down. I was just having fun.

"I was talking to my teammates. I was talking to them, and I was just trying to be in the moment. But no, I don't take nothing back. I was just having fun."

Antetokounmpo later tweeted out a photo of himself sitting on the court with the caption, "Sit back, relax and enjoy the show."

What will happen the next time Antetokounmpo and Howard meet? Buy the WrestleMania pay-per-view to find out! (Or just watch the next Sixers vs. Bucks game on April 22.)

Jordan Greer

Jordan Greer Photo

Jordan Greer has been with The Sporting News since 2015. He previously worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He is a graduate of Westminster College and Syracuse University.