Hawks’ Dejounte Murray says referee he bumped was ‘brushing me off’ prior to incident
Hawks suspended Dejounte Murray claims the umpire he bumped into ‘wiped’ me before the incident as he reveals issues with Gediminas Petraitis stem from San Antonio’s spell
Dejounte Murray has claimed that the official he bumped into after the Hawks’ Game 4 loss to the Celtics “repulsed” me and “ignored” him throughout the game.
Murray was suspended by the NBA for Game 5βa potential series final with Boston leading 3β1βfor “inappropriate contact and verbal abuse of a game official” following the 129β121 loss.
But the Atlanta guard suggested official Gediminas Petraitis also played a role in the incident, saying the tension with the umpire dates back to his time with the San Antonio Spurs from 2016-22.
‘A lot has preceded it. A lot,β said Murray.
Ignore a lot. A lot of brushing off, brushing off my teammates. Just asking questions about how we can get better.
Dejounte Murray bumped into umpire Gediminas Petraitis after the Hawks’ Game 4 loss
Murray has performed extremely well in the series, averaging 25.3 points per game
“And even just with that person, it goes back to San Antonio, where I don’t know why that person treated me the way he treated me over the years.”
Murray also said that ‘we all need to be held accountable – players, coaches, even the umpires. It should not be one-sided. It should all be fair,” before sharing his opinion that he should not have been suspended.
Nevertheless, the Atlanta guard accepted blame for his decision to run into Petraitis and ultimately disqualify himself from a must-win Game 5.
“At the end of the day, I’m a grown man and I’m standing my ground and taking full responsibility for not being able to play for my teammates, the fans and just the organization as a whole,” said Murray.
The NBA announced Monday its decision to suspend Murray – who has averaged 25.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.8 assists in the series.
After the horn sounded after the end of Game 4, Murray punched Petraitis with his chest as he walked off the field, and turned to yell something before being pulled away and led to the locker room.
Petraitis has worked as an NBA official for seven seasons and made his playoff debut in 2019.
Murray’s season isn’t over after the Hawks stunned Boston to win Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Petraitis has been an NBA official for seven seasons and made his playoff debut in 2019