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The NBA has suspended Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray for Game 5 against the Boston Celtics. Murray berated one of the referees and then bumped into him after the Hawks' 129-121 loss on Sunday.
Murray wasn't ejected as the game was already over but the league still looked into the apparent contact. The Hawks are down 1-3 in the series and could be eliminated on Tuesday when they take on the Celtics at TD Garden.
The NBA has been very strict with players getting into contact with referees even if it's inadvertent. Earlier this season, the league also suspended Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams for unintentionally bumping into a referee.
Murray was likely pissed off by the way the referees handled the game. Boston diffused every rally Atlanta threw at them in Game 4. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 16 of the Celtics' last points to carry the team to the finish line.
Dejounte Murray played 40 minutes and tallied 23 points, nine rebounds, six assists, one steal and one block. It wasn't enough to help the Hawks, though, from falling to the brink of elimination on Tuesday night.
The Murray incident, unlike Williams' case, was deliberate. He verbally abused referee Gediminas Petraitis before bumping him. Boston's backup forward was suspended for the inadvertent hit. It was almost certain "Baby Boy" would be forced to sit out on Tuesday.
Quin Snyder hasn't decided who will replace Dejounte Murray in the starting lineup
Atlanta Hawks coach Quin Snyder hasn't decided on Dejounte Murray's replacement in the starting five. Snyder told the media that he will have to look at different things before deciding who will replace the former All-Star.
Murray and Trae Young have developed superb chemistry in just their first season together with the Hawks. Atlanta's starting guards have combined to score 208 points in the postseason, the second-best in the NBA.
Only the superstar duo of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker have more (250). Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are just a point behind the Hawks' duo's total. The Celtics' "Js" have tallied 207 points combined.
Bogdan Bogdanovic is likely going to replace Dejounte Murray in Snyder's starting unit. He has played 54 games for the Hawks this season and started in nine of them.
Bogdanovic is also tailor-made to operate alongside Trae Young. He is shooting 51.4% from the field, including a sizzling 47.8% from behind the arc. Murray could never come close to him as a threat to put up buckets on the perimeter.
Quin Snyder's problem, though, hasn't been the Hawks' offense as they've been superb on that end. It's their defense that has been carved by the Boston Celtics. Without Murray in the lineup, the Celtics could feast on Atlanta's undersized and unathletic guards.
Snyder's other option would be to go big and move De'Andre Hunter to the shooting guard spot. Saddiq Bey could be inserted as Dejounte Murray's replacement.
The Hawks will have better size and athleticism to contend against the Celtics' wing players. It remains to be seen how they will compensate for Murray's suspension.
Also read: Watch- Dejounte Murray faces a possible suspension as he bumps into referee after losing Game 4
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