It was a clash of titans—a showdown between the reigning champs and the best in the West. Fans weren’t just watching a game; they were imagining a potential NBA Finals preview. The Celtics came out swinging in the first half against the Thunder. Their offense clicked like they had been choreographed, picking apart what’s considered the toughest defense in the league. But hey, basketball is a game of two halves, and the second one? Let’s just say Boston might want to forget it. The C’s couldn’t bury a 3-pointer after halftime!

And then there was Jaylen Brown… He gave it his all, dropping 21 points with three boards, three dimes, a steal, and a block. Sounds decent, right? But here’s the kicker—he shot 8-for-19 overall and just 1-for-6 from three. It’s tough to pull out a win when even your biggest stars are struggling to find the bottom of the net.

Combine two of the best teams with bad officiating, and you get tonight’s game. The NBA had announced the officials for this highly anticipated matchup, with Scott Foster leading the crew as the chief referee. When his name was announced the crowd booed according to Clemente Almanza. If you’re an NBA fan, you’ve probably heard Foster’s name pop up—usually not for great reasons. He’s gained a reputation for stirring up controversy with his calls, and let’s be honest, fans love to keep tabs on him.

It is an NBA problem, it happened yesterday to Draymond Green. There were bad calls all around. But one thing never stops, whether it is a rainy day or not. The fanbase called out the refs for this C’s matchup, again.

Bad officiating makes fans forget the Celtics and Jaylen Brown’s poor shooting

One fan wrote, “This is Celtics vs Thunder game is why nobody is watching the nba anymore. The refs shouldn’t be controlling the game like this! And this is coming from someone who doesn’t like the Celtics.” Fans weren’t just watching two powerhouse teams face off; they were watching the referees insert themselves into the action, and let’s just say it didn’t go unnoticed.

Missed shots were one thing, but the officiating turned into a subplot that overshadowed the game itself.

“Refs are awful,” wrote another fan. Fans tune in to watch Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander trade buckets—not to see officials blowing their whistles at every other play. The Celtics had 24 free throws compared to OKC’s 13 tonight. As a neutral, it felt like the refs were waiting for the ball to go in before deciding on another call.

A neutral fan tweeted, “I’m not a Boston fan but that’s an insane ref job job in favor of OKC. Lmao. They’re letting OKC hand check and be agressive but not the Celtics”. OKC’s physical defense—often praised for its toughness—appeared to go unchecked, while Boston faced tighter scrutiny. Hand-checking, which has been against the rules since the early 2000s, seemed to slip through the cracks for the Thunder. If only the NBA allowed fighting back like Joe Mazzulla wanted. Mazzulla also expressed his interest in seeing the NBA adopt power plays, similar to what hockey does.

Meanwhile, similar actions by the Celtics were met with fouls, disrupting their rhythm and forcing players to second-guess their movements.

“Refs in this Celtics game are unbelievable, we’ve shot horribly but this 4th quarter has quickly became the referee show,” expressed another netizen. Fans understand that teams will have off-nights—like Boston’s ice-cold shooting—but what’s harder to accept is when referees take over and dominate the narrative in the game’s most crucial moments.

Players can have bad games, but when referees dominate the spotlight, the focus shifts away from the sport itself, leaving everyone—fans and teams—frustrated.

Another fan was very frustrated. They wrote, “The Celtics are pretty bad this 2nd half, but these refs !! Holy f–k–g s–t”. Boston struggled mightily after halftime, but the officiating became such a glaring issue that even poor shooting took a backseat in fans’ minds. Whistles were flying left and right, turning what could have been a competitive finish into a frustrating watch.