Isaiah Thomas' debut with the Boston Celtics did not end well as he was ejected from their loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday with just five minutes remaining in regulation.
“Obviously, you need scorers on the floor late in the game,” Stevens told reporters after the game. “But that was the call that was made. We’ve got to do a better job of handling our emotions, and we’ve got to do a better job of making sure that we don’t let (the Lakers) get in the rhythm they got in. He’s got to be there at the end. That’s No. 1. He does a lot of good things for our team; he’s a good player. And he knows that. He said something to the team in the locker room. He seems like an accountable guy. … But we’re going to need him. We’re going to need everyone on board, especially when we’re shorthanded.”
Thomas apologized to his new teammates in the locker room following the loss, and they accepted his apology.
“You can’t fault him for that,” said point guard Marcus Smart. “He’s passionate. It’s a mistake anyone else could make.”
Forward Evan Turner echoed those statements, saying "he didn’t deserve to get ejected."
Thomas did score 21 points in 25 minutes. He will make his home debut on Wednesday against the New York Knicks.
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