Georges Niang only played four minutes in 76ers-Celtics Game 7, but he managed to become a major talking point of the Eastern Conference semifinal series finale.
It wasn’t because of a clutch basket or a great defensive effort, though. In the second quarter at TD Garden, a replay review of Jaylen Brown chirping at Philadelphia’s bench showed Niang grabbing at the Boston star’s knee. Brown was issued a technical before the referees took a closer look and Niang ultimately received the same punishment.
The seventh-year pro spoke about the incident following the 76ers’ season-ending loss.
“He had fell on the bench and I guess it looked like I grabbed him,” Niang told reporters, per USA Today. “I haven’t looked at the film. It was a bang-bang play. Nothing malicious so take it for what it is. It’s an intense environment and things happen quickly.”
Niang added: “I don’t think it was purposely done to hurt Jaylen. I think these things happen over the course of the game. He came to the bench and if it looked like I was holding him back to get back on defense, that wasn’t my intention.”
Brown wasn’t upset with Niang after the Celtics’ Game 7 win, but he did take issue with the tech he received from head official Scott Foster. Fortunately for Brown, the NBA rescinded the punishment Monday.
