The NBA’s last-two-minute officiating report from the Celtics’ 99-98 win over the Rockets on Thursday identified five likely traveling violations against the Celtics that were not called, as well as a foul on Kyrie Irving and a lane violation against Al Horford. The Rockets, meanwhile, did not benefit from any missed calls during the final two minutes, according to the report.

That game was officiated by just two referees, as crew chief Mark Lindsay was sidelined with a sore back. Celtics coach Brad Stevens on Saturday said he had not seen the full report, but empathized with the undermanned crew.

“Over the course of time there’s so much human error involved,’’ he said. “And that’s why you have three officials to make it as seamless as possible. But those guys work their tails off to try to do the best job that they can. And with two, that’d be really hard.’’

Added Celtics point guard Irving: “They try to do their jobs to the best of their abilities, especially with the high-level athletes we have. It’s big-time plays, big-time players on national TV, and you have to make the right call every time. I support their jobs, but I also understand the player’s perspective of you want the right call made at that point in the game.’’

The Celtics stormed back from a 26-point deficit to win the game. In the last 10 seconds two controversial offensive fouls were called against Rockets guard James Harden after he pushed off on Marcus Smart, but the NBA ruled that they were the proper calls.

“As players and coaches you just move on,’’ Stevens said. “We don’t really look at [the reports]. I understand why the league does it, because I think the transparency’s really important. But I also think that there’s not much to be gained from a player’s, coach’s or probably even an official’s standpoint, because everybody’s trying to do the best they can when they’re out there.’’

Brown is back

Forward Jaylen Brown returned to practice on Saturday after missing the last two games with a sore knee. He wore a protective sleeve and said he was able to complete cutting drills without pain. Brown, who hopes to play against the Nets on Sunday, said the sleeve restricted his movement slightly but provided important support.

“You still have to find ways to be effective if your athleticism or speed isn’t there,’’ Brown said. “I think it will be good for me. Coming out, just trying to find ways to help our team and slow my game down a little bit. Maybe it’s a good thing.’’

Stevens said that the Celtics would err on the side of caution with Brown.

“We’re not going to have him out there unless he feels great and our training staff feels great that he’s ready to go,’’ Stevens said.

Reserve forward Semi Ojeleye was limited at practice, and Stevens said that while Ojeleye is nearing a return, he probably would not be available to face Brooklyn.

Frustrating return

During the first half of the win over the Rockets, Stevens turned to the bench to look for forward Marcus Morris, but he was not there. Stevens then noticed that Morris, who has been slowly working his way back to full strength after dealing with lingering knee soreness, was on an exercise bike in the corner.

“I told him in the second half, ‘Hey, go get your bike ride in, because you’re going to go in sooner than you did in the first half,’ ’’ Stevens said.

This season has been a challenge for Morris. He missed the season’s first eight games with a sore knee and his playing time was limited when he returned. He played a season-high 27 minutes and scored 17 points in back-to-back wins against the 76ers and Suns on Nov. 30 and Dec. 2. But then his knee troubles resurfaced, causing him to miss eight more games this month before returning on Christmas.

“I know how frustrating it’s been,’’ Stevens said, “because it’s so hard to sit out for three weeks and then play your first game on Christmas Day, in that game, in that kind of attention and everything else, and you’re just trying to find your rhythm.’’

Morris had an encouraging second half against Houston, making 4 of 6 shots and playing some strong defense against Harden.

“We need him to score, we need him to be aggressive, we need him to be able to guard multiple positions,’’ Stevens said. “And I thought he did a lot of that.’’

Time for practice

The Celtics have played an NBA-high 39 games this year. In addition to the grueling travel, this tightly packed schedule has severely limited Boston’s opportunities to practice. Saturday’s session was the Celtics’ first full practice since Nov. 29.

“We talked about having to kind of reestablish a mind-set of practicing and making sure that we utilize these days to get better and improve, get ready for the next game and everything else,’’ Stevens said. “Guys were good, guys were focused. We had good energy, as you would expect.’’

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.