On an inbounds play after the Celtics field goal that cut it to one, Marcus Smart drew an offensive foul on James Harden. Things departed from normal even before the Celtics and Rockets tipped off their game Thursday night in Boston, as referee Mark Lindsay was forced to sit things out with a back injury suffered during pre-game warm-ups. Harden didn’t hide his feelings after the Rockets’ bizarre 99-98 loss, especially about the fact that there were only two officials on the court all night. “Well, first of all, I’m wondering how do you only have two officials on a national TV game? Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving said both teams had to deal with it.

Source: thestar December 29, 2017 21:33 UTC