:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58926221/usa_today_10676137.0.jpg)
Shams Charania reported Tuesday that Celtics guard Marcus Smart was fined $15,000 by the NBA for publicly criticizing the referees of Saturday’s Celtics-Rockets clash.
Boston's Marcus Smart has been fined $15,000 by NBA for public criticism of officiating after Celtics' loss in Houston on Saturday night.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 6, 2018
Smart talked about after the loss how James Harden does a lot of things to his defenders that allows him to draw fouls, and that he has gotten the benefit of the doubt from officials in the past.
Marcus Smart fined $15,000 for his criticism of "The Harden Rules" after Saturday night's loss in Houston, chronicled here by @AdamHimmelsbach pic.twitter.com/aQHOs7vURv
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) March 6, 2018
Boston, but mostly Smart played good defense on Harden nonetheless, forcing him to shoot 6-18 from the floor and 3-12 from three. Still Harden accumulated 13 free throw attempts in a tight game between two of the league’s top teams.
It’s unfortunate for Smart to have to pay a $15,000 fine on his 24th birthday, but Boston is coming off its fifth win in six games since the All Star break, so he’ll be just fine.
The Celtics take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night, and Smart will most likely need to step up if Kyrie Irving remains sidelined with knee soreness.