Through nearly a quarter of the NBA season, the Boston Celtics hold the best record.

The Celtics won their third game in a row on Friday, defeating the Philadelphia 76ers. However, the team’s star player, Jayson Tatum, was dismissed late in the third quarter and did not return.

In the dying moments of the third quarter, the four-time NBA All-Star had a heated discussion with officials, causing officials to toss him out.

Tatum claimed after the game that he was singled out by game officials.

“I was extremely surprised,” Tatum admitted. “You all witnessed what happened. I’m not sure what I said, but it doesn’t matter at this point. That does not sit well with me. One of the assistant coaches was with me, and he disagrees. But it truly doesn’t matter. It’s like the referee’s word vs ours. Even if I was correct, they would still toss you out.

“They [were] prepared. They were about to evict me. Did I swear? I didn’t do it. I didn’t utter a curse word. You can probably read my lips if you watch the clips. There will be no hand motions. Me and Bill [Kennedy] were talking, and the other two refs — as I previously stated, refs may have an impact on the game. They do have an impact on the final result.”

Tatum also stated that, in his experience, officials often give NBA players more leeway before ejecting them.

“I’ve been in the league for a long time. I’ve seen much worse behavior and reactions tolerated for much longer periods of time. So I was taken aback when those two threw me out of the game. You always say to get your money’s worth, don’t you? We get penalized for these techs, and I definitely did not get my money’s worth by being ejected from the game tonight.”

Tatum stated again that he did not use any profanity during his conversation with the officials.

“I said exactly what I stated. There were no special words. I did not curse. The assistant coach was nearby and heard me. I’m not sure. Could it be that they didn’t want me to play tonight? They were desperate to get me out of there. It was almost as if it were a joke. I couldn’t help but laugh.”