Joe Mazzulla, Jaylen Brown furious with officiating during Celtics loss to Bulls
BOSTON -- Both Joe Mazzulla and Jaylen Brown were furious with the officiating during Thursday night's Boston Celtics loss to the Chicago Bulls, after both were assessed technical fouls in the fourth quarter. Mazzulla had calmed down a bit when he took the podium postgame, but Brown was still pretty heated and lasted out at referee Justin Van Duyne.
While Mazzulla managed to fire off a sarcastic comment, Brown did not mince words and called the tech he was assessed by Van Duyne, "bulls---."
Mazzulla, Brown hit with technical fouls
It was a frustrating night overall for the Celtics as they struggled to get their three-point shot going for much of the game. They held a four-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, but were down by nine points midway through the frame.
Brown cut that deficit to three points, 99-96, with a three-pointer at the 5:55 mark, but the Celtics started to lose their cool about 40 seconds later. After Jayson Tatum missed a potential game-tying three, Chicago's Ayo Dosunmu and Brown and Payton Pritchard all gave chase for the rebound. Dosunmu covered it up, and Brown and Pritchard covered him up, resulting in a jump ball.
Van Duyne called for Pritchard to take the jump for the Celtics. Both Mazzulla and Brown disagreed vehemently, believing that Brown was the one that should have been taking the jump. Mazzulla went on the court to plead his case, and Van Duyne quickly called the Boston head coach for a technical.
Mazzulla was obviously not happy with that, and had to be restrained by his assistants. He continued to jaw at Van Duyne, looking like he wanted to take matters into the Octagon.
After Zach LaVine hit the technical free throw and the two teams lined up for the jump ball, Brown walked over to Van Duyne to get an explanation on Mazzulla's tech. Brown's exchange led to him getting hit with a tech as well, and LaVine was back at the free-throw line for another freebie.
Pritchard eventually tapped the jump to Kristaps Porzingis, but the ball went out of bounds and went to the Bulls. LaVine drained a three on Chicago's next possession to push the lead to 104-99, and the Celtics never recovered.
Jayson Tatum was assessed a technical a few minutes later -- this time for waiving his hand at Tony Brothers -- and the Celtics lost, 117-108, for just their sixth defeat of the season.
Mazzulla, Brown react to officiating
Mazzulla was still livid at the end of the game and continued to shout toward Van Duyne. He was once again restrained by his assistants.
Mazzulla likely took his frustrations out on some innocent water cooler, because he was much calmer when he hit the podium to chat with reporters. He didn't disagree that he should have been assessed a technical.
"I just can't be on the court. Ref has to do his job and I was on the court," he explained.
As for his emotions at the end of the game, Mazzulla said he wasn't that heated.
"I was never really worked up to the level of which ... I was fine," he said. "I just hadn't seen him in a while, so, just a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday. I wasn't sure if I was going to see them before the holiday and I just can't let a moment go by where you don't wish the best to them and theirs."
While Mazzulla had some fun with his overly sarcastic explanation, Brown was in no mood for holiday cheer after the loss. He explained that he didn't believe that Mazzulla should have been teed up and let Van Duyne know, which got him his own T.
"I got fined a couple weeks ago for inadvertent gestures that are determined to not be a part of the game, which was fine. I took the fine. But what part of the game is a ref calling an inadvertent technical foul?" Brown questioned after the loss. "I said to him, 'You called a tech for no reason.' He said, 'If you say it to me again, I'm gonna call another tech.' [I said again], 'You called a tech for no reason.' Then he called the tech. Like, man, get out of here. You can't threaten guys with a technical foul. That's not part of the game either. You want to fine people for gestures and all this stuff? Fine that. Like, that's some bulls---."
Brown said that string of events ultimately affected the outcome of the game.
"That could have been avoided. Joe didn't say anything to deserve a tech. And then when I come to you and say, 'You're getting a tech for no reason.' As a captain before the game, I come and shake all the refs' hands, because I speak for my team," Brown vented. "I'm allowed to talk. So when I tell you, 'You just called a tech for no reason,' and you say, 'If you say it again, I'll call another tech.' Then I say it again, and you call a tech. You just threatened your whistle as a threat. Like, that's not part of the game either. And I think it's bulls---."
While the two technicals helped Chicago boost its lead, it's not the reason the Celtics lost the game. But the team losing it's composure in that moment certainly didn't help Boston's comeback chances. And while Brown remained furious with the two calls, both were seemingly warranted; Mazzulla shouldn't have been on the court, and Brown was warned to stop yapping.
Granted, officials shouldn't be so trigger-happy and take over games the way Van Duyne did, but the Celtics ultimately let things unravel in the fourth quarter.
The Celtics were ice cold vs. Bulls
Overall, Thursday night was a pretty frustrating one for the Celtics, who were ice cold from downtown. Boston shot just 14-of-56 from three-point range (a 25 percent clip), and went just 3-of-17 from deep in the fourth quarter. Brown was just 1-of-8 from three, while Tatum was 4-of-11 and Pritchard went 4-of-10.
The Celtics weren't anything special defensively either, and what defense they did show early in the game faded in the fourth quarter. The Bulls took control of the game with a 17-4 run to start the final frame, and outscored the Celtics, 35-22, over the final 12 minutes.
The Celtics can get some quick revenge on the Bulls, as the two teams will play in Chicago on Saturday night.
