The Milwaukee Bucks dismantled the Boston Celtics on Thursday night, taking down the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 seed in blowout fashion.
Things got so bad that Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla opened the second half with all his starters on the bench, and upon the realization that they may not be returning to the floor at all, TNT, which was broadcasting the game nationally, opted to tune in elsewhere.
The broadcast switched off of the blowout in Milwaukee and opted instead to display the Dallas Mavericks’ clash against the New York Knicks. That game was also a blowout, with the Mavs ahead by 19 points early into the second quarter by the time TNT tuned in.
NBA on TNT host Ernie Johnson was comically perplexed when explaining the decision to turn off the Celtics-Bucks matchup, as there wasn’t a single close game across the league.
TNT moves off the Celtics-Bucks blowout in the 3rd quarter.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 12, 2024
"So, this game is out of hand, obviously. 100-62... And Oklahoma City, by the way, is up 36 at the half, so we're not going there. So, we'll try the Knicks and the Mavs, and it's a 47-28 game..." - Ernie Johnson 🏀📺😂 pic.twitter.com/fXJvptd2m8
“So, this game is out of hand, obviously. 100–62. And Oklahoma City, by the way, is up 36 at the half, so we’re not going there. So, we’ll try the Knicks and the Mavs, and it’s a 47–28 game,” said Johnson.
Fans had plenty of jokes at the Celtics’ expense after TNT’s broadcasting decision.
Someone just told me they're changing the game on TNT? 😂😂😂😂
— Nathan Marzion (@nathanmarzion) January 12, 2024
TNT IS TAKING THE BUCKS OFF AGAIN FOR ANOTHER BLOWOUT?????????????????????
— Ti Windisch (@TiWindisch) January 12, 2024
boston got embarrassed so bad tnt turned da game off
— Coach Rome (@Rome_Beast) January 12, 2024
LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
TNT cut away from the Bucks????? Too embarrassing for the Celtics?
— NoTechBen (@NoTechBen) January 12, 2024
Celtics bucks got so ugly they turned TNT into nba red zone 😭😭
— Old NBA Tweets (@oldnbatweetz) January 12, 2024
The broadcast eventually returned to the game in Milwaukee, though they missed a good chunk of the third quarter while spectating some other NBA action.
The Bucks ended up winning 135–102, with Bobby Portis’s 28 points leading the way offensively. As for Boston, no Celtics starter played more than Kristaps Porzingis’s 21 minutes.
