Will Dejounte Murray be suspended for bumping ref?

The Boston Celtics came out on top in Game 4 of their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday night, with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown leading the charge with 31 points each. The Celtics managed to maintain a five-point lead after three quarters and outscored the Hawks 37-34 in the fourth quarter to take a 3-1 lead in the series.

Hawks’ Murray awaits suspension

And after the buzzer, it was clear that the loss didn’t go down so well with Dejounte Murray, with the Hawks player leaning in a bumping the referee, leading many to suggest that a suspension will be coming his way and a fine.

It’s an incident that comes ahead of a crucial Game 5 on Tuesday night, one that must be won by Atlanta and followed up with two more for them to progress in the playoffs. The suspension for bumping Gediminas Petraitis, which was captured by a fan and shared on social media, feels guaranteed but how many games is less clear. The NBA is said to be investigating.

Why did Murray bump referee?

What was not immediately obvious to those seeing this clip and even for us watching the game it was difficult to ascertain why Murray had gone after Petraitis. He scored 23 points on the night, gave six assists and had nine rebounds, all a little down on his average over the four games. The overall foul count didn’t give away any clues either, finishing at 24/23.

No doubt more details will emerge but Murray didn’t speak to the gathered media after the game. Some fans have joked that a better punishment is making him play every minute of Game 5.

How Celtics went 3-1 with Hawks

Boston dominated the first half, leading 35-25 after the first quarter and 65-53 at halftime. Although the Hawks tried to make a comeback in the second quarter, the Celtics outscored them 12-4 in the final few minutes of the half to maintain their lead. Atlanta shot just 36.7 percent from the field in the first half, while Boston managed to shoot 51.7 percent.

The Hawks got off to a slow start in the final quarter, missing 12 of their first 14 shots, and the Celtics capitalized on this to gain control of the game. Although Atlanta tried to mount a comeback with 3:36 left on the clock, the Celtics shut them down by scoring the next seven points, making it impossible for the Hawks to get any closer than eight.

Trae Young led the way for the Hawks with 35 points and 15 assists, while De’Andre Hunter dropped 27 points adding to the 23 from our man-in-the-dock Dejounte Murray. Despite their impressive enough performance, the Hawks were unable to overcome the Celtics’ strong offensive play. Marcus Smart, Derrick White, Malcolm Brogdon, and Robert Williams III also scored in double figures for the Celtics, with Smart finishing with 19 points, White with 18, Brogdon with 14, and Williams with 13. Al Horford did not score, but he played a crucial role in securing an 11-rebound advantage for the Celtics.

The Celtics’ strong rebounding and shooting performance helped them bounce back from their Game 3 loss, in which they were outrebounded 48-29. The teams will face off again in Game 5 on Tuesday in Boston, which could be the last, and likely Murray will be watching on from the outside.