Dejounte Murray has been suspended by the NBA for Game 5 of the Atlanta Hawks’ first spherical sequence with the Boston Celtics after bumping an official throughout Game 4, the league has introduced. The Celtics have a 3-1 sequence lead on the Hawks going into Game 5. If Atlanta loses, their season shall be over.
As the Celtics pulled away for a 129-121 victory in Game 4, Murray made contact with a referee. That’s a no-no. Here’s video of the bump that obtained Murray suspended for an elimination recreation:
This is a devastating loss for Atlanta given the stakes of Game 5. Murray has been the Hawks’ finest participant within the sequence, averaging 25.3 factors, 7.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and a couple of.3 steals per recreation in opposition to Boston whereas taking pictures 45.6 p.c from the sector and 39.4 p.c from three.
The first spherical of the 2023 NBA Playoffs have been stuffed with controversy to date. Murray will get the second suspension of the postseason after the NBA suspended Draymond Green for Game 3 of the Warriors-Kings sequence after he stomped on Domantas Sabonis’ chest. These playoffs have already seen James Harden get ejected for pushing off a defender on a drive, and Dillon Brooks get ejected for hitting LeBron James between the legs. Neither have been suspended, however Murray shall be.
Atlanta followers have been fast to level out that Boston star Jayson Tatum additionally made contact with a ref in Game 4:
Murray’s season could be over with this Game 5 suspension. It’s not how he wished to exit in his first 12 months in Atlanta.