It’s not great when a person mistakes somebody for someone else, but that’s what happened on Friday before the Bucks played Game 3 against the Celtics. An out-of-town reporter attended Bucks practice and asked Khris Middleton a question that was supposed to be for his teammate Jabari Parker. Middleton apparently went along with it and answered anyway.
Love when the national outlets come to #Bucks practice. Someone just called this man "Jabari" ... three separate times
— Scott Grodsky (@ScottGrodsky) April 20, 2018
Asked him about his playing time too pic.twitter.com/HZkBR2xBV8
After the Bucks won, the same reporter asked Middleton about Parker’s playing time, and Middleton called him out for the mistaken identity:
The chronically underappreciated Khris Middleton turns the table on a reporter w/ Giannis Antetokounmpo's help.
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) April 21, 2018
Middleton: "Were you the guy who called me Jabari earlier today?"
Giannis: "He's the guy!" pic.twitter.com/N9htfP5os5
Reporter: “Khris, before this game, you talked about guys stepping up, and that was certainly the case tonight, especially Jabari Parker, who clocked in 30 minutes. Are you surprised he didn’t play more minutes in Game 2 earlier in the series?”
Middleton: “Were you the guy that called me ‘Jabari’ earlier today? You sure about that?”
Giannis Antetokounmpo: “Haha, he is the guy!”
Middleton: “He is the guy.”
Reporter: “It’s my fault.”
Middleton: “It’s all good.”
Reporter: “You’re right.”
Middleton: “Yeah yeah, I thought so.”
It was an awkward mistake to make, but it seems like everything’s cool between Middleton and the reporter. The best part, however, was Antetokounmpo slowly smiling as Middleton asked the question. Moments like this are better with Giannis around.