Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart is set to pay a hefty fine for his latest on-court antics.
When taking on the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night, Smart was ejected with just two minutes remaining in the game. Smart’s temper boiled over after Hawks guard Trae Young drove to the basket and banked a layup off the glass while also extending his right leg, which made contact with Smart. Just seconds after, Smart approached Young under the basket and wrestled him to the ground, giving the officials and the league no other choice.
The NBA fined Smart $25,000 on Monday, according to a statement from the league:
Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart has been fined $25,000 for initiating an on-court altercation and pulling Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young to the floor, it was announced today by Joe Dumar, Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations.
The incident, for which both players were assessed a technical foul and Smart was ejected, occurred with 1:25 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Celtics’ 134-125 win over the Hawks on Mar. 11 at State Farm Arena.
Rewatch the altercation between Smart and Young here, courtesy of NBC Sports Boston.
While Smart will have to open his wallet as a result, the C’s will have to remain laser-focused on the win column in order to take back sole possession of the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Celtics return to the court Monday night against the Houston Rockets. Tip off is set for 8 p.m. ET. at Toyota Center.
