Amid the battle of the MVPs, Jaylen Brown continued to take his shots on and off the court. He has not hidden his feelings about the Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s foul-baiting plays. It was once again visible during the Thursday matchup as the Celtics star was vocal about the issue.

With 7:48 left in the third quarter, the scores were close, 69-65, favoring Boston. Gilgeous-Alexander went to attempt a tough shot, and he leaned in, initiating contact with his defender, Luka Garza, as Sam Hauser thwarted the layup attempt. But SGA drew the whistle, and the refs called the foul on Garza, sending the current MVP to the free-throw line for what felt like yet another masterful foul-drawing clinic.

That’s when the hot mic caught it all. Jaylen Brown, already simmering from the physicality and the calls all game, exploded on the broadcast feed: “That’s not basketball!” It’s not the first time that the Celtics star has aired his frustration about SGA’s tactics.

He initially praised the Thunder superstar, but Jaylen Brown quickly followed up with some harsh criticism. “Shai’s nice. Nice as f**k,” Brown commented on his stream in December. “I don’t like the foul-baiting s**t. But Shai’s nice.” In another stream, the 29-year-old also stated that he was tired with inconsistent calls from the officials.

“I do the same things that they do. They just pick and choose who they like to call it on. That’s the part that pisses me off.” The frustration against the Thunder was two-fold. First upset with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s foul-baiting plays. The second is the referees being inconsistent with their calls. Add to it his recent ejection and rant against the officials.

A fine incoming for Jaylen Brown

Speaking against the referees is where the NBA draws the line. Recently, the league levied a $50,000 fine against Luka Doncic as he rubbed his fingers together in a money gesture. The Lakers star issued just a gesture; meanwhile, Jaylen Brown put the refs on notice.

With less than four minutes left in the first half, Brown was upset after no foul was called when he lost the ball out of bounds. As he yelled at the referee for the no-call, Official Tyler Ford gave him the first tech. Teammates and staff had to intervene by holding him back from approaching Ford. Thus, a second technical mere seconds later, resulted in an automatic ejection.

Despite getting thrown out of the game, Jaylen Brown was not done with his tirade. He immediately hopped on X.com and tweeted, “This the s— I be talking about.” He didn’t even leave the floor easily and wanted to confront Ford right then. Joe Mazzulla and more staff had to intervene before Brown threw his hands in the air in disgust and walked away.

Brown aggressively approached Ford, and the Celtics forward didn’t stop arguing even after the first tech. “I’m sure he’s going to get a huge fine.” Tim Bontemps on Hoops Collective stated that Adam Silver won’t let Jaylen Brown escape this situation without appropriate punishment. It’s back-to-back defeats for the Celtics, and they would hope to bounce back strongly as Brown’s frustration grows.