The Celtics and Bucks are gearing up for a pivotal Game 4 in their series. But the biggest story heading into Monday’s contest isn’t about any of the action on the court.
It’s all about non-calls.
Both sides surfaced numerous gripes about the officiating following Milwaukee’s nail-biting 103-101 victory over Boston Saturday. But let’s be honest: the Celtics are the ones getting slighted.
Officials are allowing Giannis Antetokounmpo to bulldoze defenders and seemingly goal tend at will. While great players have always received favorable treatment from referees, Giannis takes the superstar bias to new levels.
Look no further than his rejection of a Jayson Tatum flouter. According to NBA rules, players cannot touch or deflect a ball that’s on its downward path toward the basket. Yet, that appears to be exactly what Giannis did on that play. The ball was clearly on its way down.
The officials swallowed their whistles.
On a different play, Giannis elbowed Tatum right in the face after getting dunked on, and once again wasn’t called for anything.
Giannis went off in Game 3, scoring 42 points on 12 rebounds and eight assists. It was an incredible bounce back effort from Game 2, where he shot just 2-for-12 from the floor in the first half.
Antetokounmpo comfortably made his shots Saturday. The fact that he is allowed to run over his opponents only helps matters.
Amusingly, Giannis was asked about the referees missing calls that would’ve benefitted Milwaukee, to which he responded with a degree of humility that is seldom seen among NBA stars. “How much does it cost if I say something, a comment about the ref? Is it $20,000? It’s a lot of money,” he told reporters. “So I should not do it. I’ll save my money, I’ve got to pay for diapers.”
Kyrie Irving, meanwhile, was more than willing to incur financial penalties for flipping off Celtics fans.
But there might be something more to Giannis’ no comment than class. Maybe he knew it would’ve looked ridiculous for him to complain about the officials after he was allowed to play like a fullback.
And we haven’t even broached Jrue Holiday not getting called for a shooting foul on Marcus Smart in the game’s waning moments, setting him up for two free throws instead of three.
Ime Udoka rightfully criticized the referees for the no-call and laid into them for their laissez-faire approach with Giannis.
“Their explanation is, if they don’t fall down, they don’t call it,” Udoka said. “So gotta teach my guys to flop a little more.”
This great series may devolve into a contest to see who can put on a better show for the refs. That would be a shame.