Jaylen Brown claims NBA refs had ‘agenda’ against him in playoff loss

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown accused NBA officials of setting an “agenda” against him in the team’s playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers, which ended with a Game 7 defeat.

Brown mentioned that he received a phone call from 76ers center Joel Embiid after Boston’s loss to Philadelphia on Saturday night. He also went after the referees on live television.

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“They say there were always scuffles and things like that,” he said. Bulk Live. “Do you know how many players do this? It’s a common game, a basketball game. Every player does this. So why are you targeting me? They clearly had an agenda. Maybe because I spoke up and criticized the referees during the regular season. So do you know how they reacted? You’ll rule the playoffs with offensive fouls. That was the referee staff’s response.

“I actually talked to some referees and they had an agenda every game. Anytime Jaylen puts his arm up for credit, just call it. Paul George does the same thing. Jalen Brunson does the same thing. I could go down the list too. Believe it or not, it’s a basketball game. Everybody does that when you’re driving, especially with bodies on top of you. Philly took advantage of that and took advantage of the officiating and it cost us to some degree.”

Philadelphia won the last game of the series 109-100. Embiid played with 34 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists. Embiid made nine of his 11 free throw attempts.

Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George and Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown fight for a loose ball in the first quarter of game seven in the first round of the 2026 NBA playoffs at TD Garden on May 2, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Winslow Townson/Imagn Images)

Brown made critical comments towards Embiid.

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“Embiid put a lot of pressure on us, as did all our big men and guards,” he said. “We didn’t really have an answer for him. We tried a bunch of different things and he’s a huge body and he was also running around and getting extra call-ups and stuff and they rewarded him for that. That’s the league we’re in. So that’s all I have to say.”

Brown averaged 25.7 points per game and shot 45.5% from the field.

He was the Celtics’ best player all season, as the team was without Jayson Tatum for most of the season. He played in 71 games and averaged 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey passes Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown during the third quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on April 30, 2026. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)

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Boston finished second in the Eastern Conference with a score of 56-26.