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.
