Marcus Smart had a pretty animated conversation with the referees following the Celtics’ 129-120 overtime defeat at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets.
Some suspect officiating in the extra period clearly drew the ire of the Celtics guard, who had to be escorted off the floor by a team staffer while he verbally tore into the referees.
Smart’s tirade came after the Celtics blew a 21-point second-half lead to the Nets in which Brooklyn dropped 51 fourth-quarter points to force OT, and Caris LeVert scored 37 of his eventual 51 points in the final 17 minutes of play.
Marcus Smart had to be escorted off the court after having a heated conversation with the refs 😡 pic.twitter.com/63KeiFUPkG
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) March 4, 2020
Smart fouled out of Tuesday’s game just over a minute into the extra period. Once that happened, the Celtics lost all spark. Injuries to Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown left the team short-handed, to begin with. Kemba Walker hit his minutes restriction, as did the returning Robert Williams III. On top of that, Jayson Tatum missed the game due to an illness.
As a result, the overtime lineup following Smart’s sixth foul was Carsen Edwards, Brad Wanamaker, Semi Ojeleye, Javonte Green, and Daniel Theis.
With the pesky Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night, the Celtics made the right move opting for the big picture versus assuring a victory against the Nets; even if it meant consecutive blown double-digit leads.
