Since the 2017-18 season, the Boston Celtics, more often than not, have been one of the best teams in the association. They may have come close to winning a championship in 2022, but this year feels different, as the Celtics have been very dominant en route to taking a 2-0 series lead over the Dallas Mavericks in the 2024 NBA Finals. Jaylen Brown, in particular, has been the Celtics’ steadying force, remaining even-keeled and stuck to the task despite the adversity they’re facing.
As with great players, Brown has also had his fair share of detractors. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd may butter him up by saying that he is the Celtics’ best player, but he has mostly been subject to criticism that he’s just been part of an ensemble cast like Jayson Tatum is and that he could barely dribble or finish with his left hand.
Nonetheless, Jaylen Brown put his foot down and said that the Celtics’ success is his number one priority to the point that he just doesn’t care anymore about the outside noise regarding his indy.
“A championship is more like a team accolade and that is what we play the game for. The discourse around myself, that is what I don’t give a f**k about. What you do as a team, is that I do care about. That’s what I wanna achieve, that’s what I wanna be a part of, and I think that’s what we are here for,” Brown told ESPN’s Malika Andrews.
“The discourse around myself, that is what I don’t give a F— about. What we do as a team, that is what I do care about.“
Full conversation with Celtics star Jaylen Brown: https://t.co/dknUSRRMeS pic.twitter.com/UpDmdFEU5s
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) June 12, 2024
The Celtics may have assembled one of the best cores in recent history where even an off-night from either Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum doesn’t mean an automatic loss. This is not the case for most other teams that fall off dramatically whenever their star players are struggling.
But as is the case with every ensemble cast, some stand out while doing the heavy lifting. It’s not Brown’s fault that he’s part of a stacked Celtics team, and he’s been playing his part to a T, so if they end up winning it all later this month, then him being a champion is something no one can ever take from him, criticisms and all.
Jaylen Brown, the Celtics’ rock
Jayson Tatum is garnering headlines for his shooting struggles in the NBA Finals, but there Jaylen Brown remains, as consistent and steady as ever. Brown has been delivering for the Celtics on a nightly basis during this year’s playoffs, and despite fan perception, Mavericks head coach may have a point when he said that Brown is his team’s best player.
Through Game 2 of the NBA Finals, Brown is averaging 24.6 points and 6.0 rebounds for the Celtics in the 2024 NBA playoffs on a stellar shooting percentage of 54.3 per cent. His three-point shot hasn’t been the best, but he has more than made up for it with his relentlessness in attacking the rim. And he hasn’t been bad from three at all. He has made them when it mattered, most notably during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals when he sent the game to overtime with a corner triple.
The field-goal percentage may not be the be-all, end-all of efficiency, but it provides a picture of a player’s shot quality. Jaylen Brown has been selective with the shots that he takes, rarely taking poor looks, and it has shown in the box score. He has only shot the ball worse than 50 per cent from the field in this year’s playoffs in three of the 16 games the Celtics have played thus far.
Jaylen Brown may not garner as much fanfare as some of his peers like Luka Doncic, Anthony Edwards, or even his teammate Jayson Tatum. But he has been the Celtics’ rock, and he deserves plenty of credit for upholding a high standard for himself on a nightly basis.
JB proves that he’s worth his weight in gold
Brown, when he signed his huge rookie scale contract extension in 2019, was also the subject of plenty of “overpaid” allegations. Suffice it to say, the 27-year-old forward has been everything the Celtics have needed him and more, and now, they only need to win two games to secure that coveted Larry O’Brien trophy.
