After Bam Adebayo’s record-shattering 83 points, high-volume free throws have become a major talking point. That showed in the Phoenix Suns’ narrow 120-112 loss to the Boston Celtics tonight. It’s not uncommon for any game to ignite criticism on officiating. But this one really bothered the Suns. The Suns head coach Jordan Ott openly questioned the equity of the whistle after his star player made his displeasure obvious.

The postgame frustration stemmed on a staggering disparity at the free-throw line. Most of it favored Celtics star Jaylen Brown, who attempted a season-high 21 free throws. The tension reached a boiling point during the game as Devin Booker was seen in heated exchanges with officials. Ott didn’t back his player in the moment but echoed his sentiment in a blunt postgame address.

“That’s a lot of free throws for one player,” Ott remarked when asked about Brown’s 19-of-21 performance from the charity stripe. Ott described the officiating as a “blatant disruption” to the flow of the game, arguing that identical physical contact was being penalized differently between both teams.

“There’s contact on both ends… then they call a foul 85 feet from the rim. Those are killers. I don’t know how you can gauge the momentum and the flow of the game when those things happen,” Ott stated, emphasizing that any high-level competitor would be frustrated by such inconsistencies.

The game ultimately went sideways for Phoenix in the final five minutes. There were almost scoreless beyond a couple of free throws. In the closing minutes, Boston utilized a “two on the ball” defensive strategy to trap Devin Booker and force the ball out of his hands.

Despite how heated he got during the game,.  Booker was over it at the final buzzer. He was seen in a friedly conversation with both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum after the game

The Celtics credited their win to defensive playmaking and the addition of Tatum back into the lineup. Joe Mazzulla noted that Brown’s trips to the free-throw line is a collateral of playing against the Suns who are “one of the toughest teams in the league.” He claims the Celtics earned the win through keeping the Suns off the free-throw line during the closing minutes, the very thing Coach Ott felt his team was denied.

Joe Mazzulla dismisses Jaylen Brown’s free throw volume

While the Suns felt wronged on the officiating, the Celtics viewed the whistle as a byproduct of Jaylen Brown’s intentional offensive prowess. The day 43.4% of Bam Adebayo’s 83 points came from the free throw line, JB had his second career ejection. Tonight, he finished with a game-high 41 points tonight.

According to Joe Mazzulla, he spent the season studying officiating to better understand how to draw contact. He credits Celtics’ development coach, Shammgod Wells Jr. for helping Brown with that.

The Celtics coach praised this evolution, noting that Brown is a “student of getting better” and was able to “combat their physicality with offensive physicality and drives.”

Mazzulla claims he didn’t do any specific tactical maneuvers and let Jaylen Brown take charge. The Suns’ defensive breakdown in the final minutes evaporated a minor lead. Despite Book’s heroic stretch, scoring 23 straight points of his 40 between the second and third quarters, the Suns were unable to overcome Boston’s frequent trips to the line.

Mazzulla called the free-throw shots “game-changing,” obviously not upset about how many times JB was there. He’s just dismissing the critics by hyping the player who’s carried them all season.