Tony Brothers is one of the few NBA referees that fans know by name. On Sunday, he earned himself a bit more notoriety courtesy of Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young.
Young and the Hawks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers by a 129-121 final. Young himself was responsible for perhaps the biggest shot of the game, hitting a massive three to put Atlanta up four with less than a minute left.
Trae Young with the DAGGER! 🔪pic.twitter.com/wTGHuLOdOq
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) January 30, 2022
After the game, Young called out Brothers, whom he had a couple of heated moments with during the game. Young said that Brothers tried to pull the seniority card after the Hawks complained to him.
“When Tony Brothers mentions to me how many years he has reffed in this league, I don’t give a damn,” said Young, per The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner. “That just gets fired me up. I don’t think I’m emotionally drunk. I’m just competitive. It brings the best out of me and my teammates.”
Young and the Hawks were unhappy with some no-calls from Brothers during the game.
Trae was about to take the ball and leave 😂 pic.twitter.com/ldiOeXfshR
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 30, 2022
Foul or no foul? https://t.co/MauLEEeksF
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 30, 2022
Young also got a technical foul in the second quarter for complaining.
Brothers is in his 27th season as an NBA referee. But with all those years in the league has come a decent amount of infamy for Brothers as well. Young is not the only NBA star who has had an issue with Brothers.
Photo: Nelson Chenault-USA Today Sports
