Suns Sound Off on Celtics, Jaylen Brown's Free Throws

The Phoenix Suns weren't pleased with the officiating in their loss to the Boston Celtics.

Feb 26, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns head coach Jordan Ott against the Los Angeles Lakers at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

"That's a lot of free throws for one player."

Phoenix Suns coach Jordan Ott wasn't pleased with the officiating in his team's Monday night loss to the Boston Celtics, a night where Jaylen Brown shot 21 free throw attempts - a career-high for the NBA champion and Finals MVP.

“Coming into the night it was 16,” Ott continued (h/t Duane Rankin). “Now he's got 21. They're game changers. In a game like that, get to walk to the free throw line. Not only does it help your offense, that's the most efficient shot, also gets to help your defense. Got to find a way to keep him off the free-throw line.”

Brown scored 19 of his 41 points at the stripe, also adding in seven rebounds and four assists. All other Celtics players combined for six free throw attempts.

It's not as if the Suns didn't get to the line either, however. Phoenix actually shot more free throws (29) and was called for one less foul.

However, the Suns' issue more so exists in late-game scenarios. Especially on the road in a tough environment.

"There's contact on both ends. There's a loose ball foul where (Jordan Goodwin) gets knocked over the same exact possession and you go down the other way and they call a foul 85 feet from the rim. Those are killers," Ott continued (h/t Rankin).

"I don't know how you can gauge the momentum and the flow of the game. When those things happen, it disrupts it and then the frustration comes from that blatant disruption. Competitors are out there competing as hard as they do and you feel like, wait, that play literally just happened five seconds ago. That's the toughest ones. On the road, in a tough environment, we got to find a way to get over it, but any human, any high-level competitor is going to get frustrated."

Suns guard Jalen Green, after the game to reporters, said the Celtics were hunting for fouls.

“Hunting a foul every time down, it's tough to get stops. Kind of playing into their favor, slowing the game down, but that's part of it. Just got to keep fighting," Green said.

Jordan Goodwin added, "That's just what it is for us. It'd be cool if it was like once every (other) game, but it's everyday game thing for us,” Goodwin said. “We've just got to find a way. Try to play through it, but 21 free throws is crazy.”