Jaylen Brown Fined $50K After Livestream Criticism of Playoff Officials
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Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown has been handed a $50,000 fine for publicly criticizing NBA referees, the league announced on Monday.
The remarks were delivered during a Sunday livestream, hours after Boston’s 109-100 Game 7 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers that ended the Celtics’ first-round playoff run. Brown alleged that officials “had an agenda” against him throughout the series and claimed Sixers center Joel Embiid’s alleged flopping “has ruined our game.”
“Joel Embiid is a great player, one of the best bigs in basketball history, but he flops. He knows it,” Brown said during the broadcast.
At one point, the 27-year-old showed video of Philadelphia forward Paul George appearing to push off before a drive. Brown, who was whistled for 10 offensive fouls in the seven games—double the total of any other player in the first round—argued that identical moves draw different whistles depending on the player.
“If you’re going to call push-offs, call that,” he said. “Same move, same refs… If it would have been me, it’d have been an offensive foul.”
Brown was cited for 40 offensive fouls during the regular season, second most in the league behind New York’s Karl-Anthony Towns. In the Boston-Philadelphia series, total fouls were nearly even at 136 for the Celtics and 132 for the 76ers. Brown averaged 25.7 points—his best postseason mark—while shooting 45.5% from the field and 40.5% from three, and was called for 3.0 fouls per game.
The three-time All-Star also suggested certain referees “need to be investigated,” adding that he believes prior criticism of the officiating may have influenced calls against him.
This is Brown’s second fine for officiating comments this season. He was docked $35,000 after being ejected from a March 10 game against the San Antonio Spurs for protesting a no-call.
Source: Hoops Rumors
