Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Andrew Joseph

NBA fans crushed referee Tony Brothers for calling a foul on an obvious Jordan Poole flop

Theoretically, the NBA Finals should have the league’s best referees working the games. The NBA, instead, opted to give Tony Brothers a Game 5 assignment.

The controversial official was having a quiet night (by his standards) for much of the Game 5 matchup between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors. But that all changed in the fourth quarter.

With Marcus Smart jockeying for position with Jordan Poole ahead of an inbounds pass, Smart flailed his arm in the general vicinity of Poole’s face. Replays would show that Smart never made contact, and the awfully delayed reaction from Poole should have been a giveaway. Brothers, of course, called the offensive foul on Smart.

That just can’t happen in an NBA Finals game.

On top of that, Smart was called for a technical after that call. No wonder NBA fans were upset about that sequence from Brothers.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.