Kevin Durant, Ja Morant, More Call Out Technical Foul Against Celtics' Jayson Tatum

Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

Not even the combination of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, poor outside shooting and questionable officiating was enough to stop the Boston Celtics.

Boston defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 126-122 at TD Garden on Monday, improving to 11-3 with a seventh consecutive win. While Jayson Tatum shot just 1-of-9 from three-point range, he still posted a double-double of 27 points and 10 rebounds with three blocks and three steals.

It was far from a solo effort, as Jaylen Brown (26 points, six rebounds and six assists) and Marcus Smart (22 points, eight assists and five rebounds) helped the home team overcome 37 points and eight dimes from Gilgeous-Alexander.

While the game came down to the last minute, a second-quarter technical foul on Tatum caught the attention of Kevin Durant, Ja Morant and others:

Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
Tatum really got a tech for clapping 😳 pic.twitter.com/VG7MGqhrOY

Kevin Durant @KDTrey5
Jayson tatum just received the worst tech I’ve seen in the nba in a while. I’m actually laughing

Ja Morant @JaMorant
😂 nah fr https://t.co/p9j0pEU1ki

RingerNBA @ringernba
“If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!”
Jayson Tatum: *claps*
The refs: pic.twitter.com/WQFPAZn7ou

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Technical foul on Jayson Tatum. He confused as to why, as am I.

Jay King @ByJayKing
Tatum just got a technical foul for clapping his hands. To me, looked like he was mad at himself after missing a layup at the other end and then fouling, not at the call or the referee.

Craig Teed @craig_teed
Jayson Tatum, this season’s to-be-MVP, getting T’d up for clapping is laughable.

John Karalis 🇬🇷 🇺🇦 @John_Karalis
I really don’t know about that tech on Tatum. It didn’t look like he did anything at all there.

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
The official blew that one. Tatum was frustrated with himself there, not the call. https://t.co/Rhi1z39OlA

Brian Robb @BrianTRobb
That’s an outrageous overreach by the official there with that Tatum tech. The guy started 1-of-8 and is frustrated at missing a layup

Vincent Goodwill @VinceGoodwill
Wait, did Tatum really get a tech for clapping? Not a sarcastic clapping but one clap

Fortunately for the Celtics, the technical foul didn’t prove too costly. Boston outscored the Thunder by 11 in the final quarter, overcoming a 15-point third-quarter deficit against a team that was on a two-game winning streak even if it doesn’t have particularly high expectations this season.

While Tatum and Brown were the stars, Smart and Derrick White combined for 10 straight Celtics points in the final two minutes. They each made a clutch three-pointer and scored in the lane, holding off a late push from Gilgeous-Alexander.

The result was another win for the championship contenders. Tatum continued his hot start to the season with a second consecutive double-double after he posted 43 points in a win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday.

He will look to extend that streak—and avoid a questionable technical foul—when the Celtics take on the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.