Brook Lopez says Giannis' ejection gave them an opportunity to build more cohesion with Damian Lillard

There was a silver lining to Giannis' ejection on Wednesday night.

© Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports

There’s very little benefit to not having your best player on the floor. However, on Wednesday night against the Detroit Pistons, the Milwaukee Bucks made the most out of a bleak situation when Giannis Antetokounmpo was ejected with nine minutes left in the third quarter. Without their best player, the Bucks had to rely on their depth, team chemistry, and Damian Lillard to secure a 120-118 victory.

Questionable calls

It was a contentious game wherein numerous technical fouls were called. However, the biggest call came in the third when Giannis was slapped with his second technical foul of the game after what officials deemed was a “taunting” violation on the “Greek Freak.”

.@stephenasmith says Giannis getting ejected was RIDICULOUS 👀

"I'm going to call the league office today. Who the hell is paying to see the referee? That is not a reason to eject Giannis Antetokounmpo from a game." pic.twitter.com/y84gU3WpKC

— First Take (@FirstTake) November 9, 2023

“We felt there was a lot of questionable calls,” Lopez said. “You got to fight through that. The way Giannis got kicked out, we obviously don't think that was great or correct.”

Build more cohesion with Dame

Seven-time All-Star Damian Lillard has not even been with the Milwaukee Bucks for a whole month so it’s safe to say that the cohesion between him and his teammates isn’t exactly where it should be. However, with Giannis in the locker room and the Pistons having their way, Lopez said it provided the perfect storm for them to come together as a team.

"We turned it into a positive. It sucked not to have him out there. But it was a great opportunity for us to play pretty much solely with Dame. Get him more used to us, get used to him and all other guys. CP (Cameron Payne) was out there. (MarJon) Beauchamp. Everyone had great minutes and stepped up,” Lopez said.

Lillard and Lopez each put their imprint late in the game. Dame knocked down two jumpers to lift the Bucks to give the Bucks a 116-115 lead before Brook added a long triple and a block to secure the victory.

Brook Lopez In The Final Minute

Three To Extend The Lead To Four
Block To Deny Pistons Lead

What A Game From Brook 🔥🔥pic.twitter.com/Yl7sFOAhcu

— NBA Statigami (@LiveNBAStats) November 9, 2023

Giannis has a 3-word message after Milwaukee's dramatic win versus Detroit