NBA: Celtics' Jaylen Brown critical of refs for 'agenda,' calls out 76ers' Joel Embiid

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown criticized officiating and questioned the physical style of play from the Philadelphia 76ers following Boston’s first-round playoff exit, also taking aim at 76ers center Joel Embiid for what he described as excessive flopping.

Brown made the remarks during a Twitch livestream on Sunday, one day after the second-seeded Celtics were eliminated in Game 7 at home by the seventh-seeded 76ers in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Boston played without injured forward Jayson Tatum, but Brown pointed to officiating and Philadelphia’s approach as key factors in the series outcome, as the 76ers closed the matchup by winning the final three games.

Embiid delivered a dominant performance in the series-clinching 109-100 win, finishing with 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists while going 9 of 11 from the free-throw line. Brown argued that Embiid’s physical presence and tendency to draw contact played a major role in how the game was officiated.

“That’s just my opinion on basketball. Some people might disagree,” Brown said. “Flopping has ruined the game. Embiid is a great player, one of the best big men in basketball history, but he flops. He knows it.”

Brown also suggested that his past criticism of referees during the regular season influenced how officials called the series, particularly in relation to offensive fouls assessed against him.

“Why are you targeting me? It felt like there was an agenda,” Brown said. “Maybe because I spoke out during the regular season. It felt like every time I brought my arm up, it was automatically an offensive foul.”

He added that other players, including Paul George and Jalen Brunson, use similar physical techniques when driving to the basket but are not penalized at the same rate.

“Everybody does that when you drive, especially when there’s contact,” Brown said. “But it was being called differently in this series.”

According to reports, Brown was called for 10 offensive fouls during the first round, more than any other player in the postseason. During the regular season, Karl-Anthony Towns led the league with 65 offensive fouls, while Brown ranked second with 40.

The 29-year-old forward is a five-time NBA All-Star and was named NBA Finals MVP when Boston won the championship in 2024. He finished the regular season with career highs of 28.7 points and 5.1 assists, along with 6.9 rebounds per game across 71 appearances. In the playoffs, Brown averaged 25.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists over seven games.

-Field Level Media/Reuters