Monty Williams Didn’t Know Giannis Antetokounmpo Was Leading Him into Bucks’ Locker Room

Following the Suns loss to the Bucks in the Finals, Phoenix Suns head coach was spotted in the opposing team’s locker room giving a speech. Some questioned the move, and why he would actually give a speech to a team he just got beat by. But Williams says he thought Antetokounmpo was leading him into a side office, not the middle of the locker room.

Phoenix Suns Head Coach Monty Williams Got Emotional After Visiting The Bucks Locker Room Following Finals Losshttps://t.co/XHmtSfrgFR

— SideAction (@SideActionHQ) July 21, 2021

Williams, via Sam Amick of The Athletic:

“You know what man, I heard about what was made of it after the fact. And to be straight with you, it happened so quick. All I wanted to do was congratulate Giannis, because I came right out of a press conference and I shut the door and I went right into him. And he was sitting there with a cigar in his hands, soaking wet from — I guess — the champagne, and he had a bottle in his hand (laughs). So I’m thinking to myself, ‘How cool is this, man?’ (laughs). I come right out of my press conference, I’m emotional, and then I run right into him and I just wanted to be gracious and say ‘Congrats. You deserved it. You beat us.’

I wasn’t trying to do anything (in the Bucks locker room), I was just trying to congratulate Giannis, and I thought maybe he’d take me to a side office where Bud (Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer) and (Bucks general manager) Jon (Horst) were and I was just going to congratulate them and maybe see a couple of their players. I had no idea that he was going to take me into the whole deal (laughs), but it was cool because I had so much respect for him.

Yeah, he was like ‘Come on, Coach,’ and I was like, ‘OK.’ I didn’t know their locker room, and it was all done authentically. I wasn’t trying to be a great sportsman. I wasn’t trying to be classy, any of that. I was just doing what I was taught, you know? When you lose, you look the guy in the eye, you shake his hand — as hard as it is — and maybe someday you get a chance to be on the other side of that.”

Monty Williams unplugged: On his Bucks locker room visit, Chris Paul, finding peace in Texas, spirituality and more

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— Rotolytics (@rotolytics) August 23, 2021

Giannis is really the guy responsible, not sure  why he would lead Monty into the locker room, but it ended up being a nice moment.

Williams handled that surprise visit very well…

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