Celtics are the first NBA team to not shoot free throws. Boston and Bucks combine for a record-breaking 2 tries

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics combined for a record-tying pair of free throw attempts Tuesday night, with the Celtics becoming the first team in NBA history to fail to make a single shot.

Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo shot the only two free throws of the game, making one with 19 seconds left in the first quarter the Bucks' 104-91 victory.

“Man, (NBA commissioner) Adam Silver is the happiest,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “1:57 game time. Gosh, you can go to a game and still eat dinner. Incredible.”

Rivers said he didn't realize there were so few free throws until after the game.

“I thought it was a physical game and then they gave me the stat sheet and I told them, 'No, I need the full game,'” Rivers said. “I thought it was the halftime stats. I haven't looked at the log. And then I said, 'Wow, two free throws for a basketball game.' That's crazy.'”

The Memphis Grizzlies and Atlanta Hawks shared the previous record of a free throw attempt in a game. The Bucks committed just four fouls on Tuesday, the fewest in league history.

The two combined attempts broke the previous record of 11, set on November 10, 2019, when Indiana had five shots and Orlando had six.

“Maybe I’m just preparing for the playoffs. They’re going to let a lot of things go, I guess they’re just getting us ready for the basketball playoffs,” Boston’s Jayson Tatum said.

It was particularly surprising that this record was achieved in a game between the Bucks and Celtics. Antetokounmpo entered Tuesday with an NBA-best 780 free throws. Milwaukee's Damian Lillard ranked seventh (494) and Tatum eighth (488) in that category.

Lillard noted that fouls seemed to have declined across the league toward the end of the season.

“It was strange, but it seems to be the trend,” Lillard said. “Fouls are no longer part of the game. It's like, I've had times where I thought I was going to get fouled, and there were other times where I was surprised that I didn't get a foul called, where I might bump into someone or get a piece of someone's arm and they don't call it, and I'm like, 'Man, they're really just letting us play.'

“And then, like the other night, I fouled out about two minutes before the end of the game. I fouled out twice in the last five games or something like that. I hadn't committed a foul for I don't know how long. You just have to keep going, no matter how the game goes. I can barely remember any whistles tonight.”

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