"Start fining refs": Jayson Tatum's ejection vs Rockets causes outrage, Celtics fans furious
Saturday's matchup between Boston Celtics and the Houston Rockets saw Jayson Tatum get ejected after a heated argument with the referee. The exchange between Tatum and the official took place early in the fourth quarter when the Boston Celtics star got upset for not getting a foul call.
With 10:32 remaining on the clock in the fourth quarter, Jayson Tatum attacked the rim when he met Cam Whitmore in the air. Whitmore slapped Tatum's arms in an attempt to stop the Celtics star's shot, however, the referee missed the foul call. JT was upset and gave the official an earful which resulted in a technical foul. After receiving the tech, Tatum continued to mouth off and got himself ejected in return.
Fans on social media were just as frustrated as Tatum and called out the inconsistent refereeing in the league. Here's what some of them had to say on X:
"Not a Tatum fan, but there should be physical consequences for those officials."
"NBA refs are so soft it’s ridiculous"
"Start fining refs"
"Clear foul and it was more than once. Up almost 30 I’d argue with him too 😭 "
"What is going on with these referees?"
"It's been Crazy this season. Tatum tossed twice for bull s**t calls this season. Brown once and that was the first ever. Porzingis has had multiple techs for barely hanging on the rim. And it's all around the league."
"The refs really don't like the celtics now do they."
"Someone find me the refs number I need to have a little talk…you don’t eject my goat 🤬 "
Celtics vs Rockets recap: Boston wins despite Jayson Tatum's ejection
The Boston Celtics annihilated the Houston Rockets 145-113 on Saturday night. While it was a domini victory for the Boston squad, it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Star player Jayson Tatum was ejected from the game early in the fourth quarter. Fortunately, the Celtics already had a commanding lead.
Despite his abrupt exit from the game, Tatum still put up decent numbers in 30 minutes of play. JT had 27 points, eight rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block. As always, the other half of his dynamic duo, Jaylen Brown also contributed 32 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks.
Four other Boston players notched up double figures in scoring. Payton Pritchard with 19 points, Kristaps Porzingis with 17 points, Derrick White with 13 points, and Jrue Holiday with 11 points.