Boston Celtic guards Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart were in the middle of a dust up with Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid during their opening night victory over the Sixers, and both had something to say regarding the incident following the game.
“Embiid was getting away with a lot of unnecessary pushing and shoving”, Brown said, according to The Athletic’s Jared Weiss. “We’re not taking no mess this year.”
Smart went on the tell his side of the story of what went down.
“Went for a rebound” Smart said. “Basketball play, went for a steal. My arm’s still stuck in there and he tries to break it. And I’m the only one who gets a tech. Everybody saw it. If I did that, I’m probably ejected, suspended. Three games, four games, fines. … Defending DPOY and that’s how he gets treated? It’s tough. I could have cracked his head open, but I didn’t. That’s the maturity we have,” he said.
The Celtics seem like they are ready to bring the fire to each game this season, and their season-opening victory surely sets the right tone of the 2022-2023 season.
