The Boston Celtics didn’t put up much of a fight Wednesday night, but things still managed to get interesting in the fourth quarter.
The Washington Wizards led Boston by 20 points with under six minutes remaining at Verizon Center when Celtics guard Marcus Smart dribbled into a double team in his own end. John Wall trapped Smart, but rather than go for the ball, the Wizards guard instead tossed Smart pretty forcefully to the ground.
Never one to back down from a conflict, Smart immediately started jawing at Wall. The referees hit Smart with a technical foul, but Wall received the most severe punishment, getting ejected from the game after being assessed a flagrant two.
It was a pretty strange show of aggression from Wall, considering the Wizards led comfortably and cruised to a 118-93 win. As expected, Smart wasn’t too happy about it.
“He made a hard foul, and I didn’t take too fond of it,” Smart said after the game, via MassLive.com. “So, I let him know what I had to say. I ain’t backing down from nobody, and that’s going to be understood from here on out. I don’t know what he thought, but I think he got the message.”
Wall, who was fined $25,000 on Wednesday for making contact with an official in Monday’s game, didn’t exactly offer an apology.
At least Smart and Wall brought some life to a 25-point blowout.
Thumbnail photo via Brad Mills/USA TODAY Sports Images
