After blowing by Paolo Banchero on a hard dribble drive and banking in a shot off two feet just above the restricted area, Jaylen Brown picked the pocket of Orlando guard Cory Joseph on the ensuing possession.
Upon corralling the ball, Brown immediately took off in a dead sprint toward the rim. Banchero tried to chase him down in transition but was left in the dust.
As Banchero gave up the chase, half-heartedly extending an arm, Brown was already mid-flight.
He floated through the air before hammering home a thunderous one-handed slam—one that got Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, seated on the baseline, out of his seat and clapping along with the rest of the 19,155 in attendance for Game 2.
The sequence was reminiscent of the dominant Jaylen Brown from this time last year, the one who powered his way to the Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals MVP. It also offered reassurance to anyone concerned about the knee injury that forced him to miss eight of Boston’s final 16 regular-season games and had kept him under 30 minutes in each game since March 12.
“He’s been great and consistent throughout the season,” said head coach Joe Mazzulla. “You just trust the mindset, and really, the warrior mentality that he has. He knows his mind, he knows his body, and he can take it to another level, mentally and physically. And tonight, he did that for the team on both ends of the floor, especially to start that third quarter for us.”
Brown finished with 36 points on 12-of-19 (63.2%) shooting from the field and 5-of-7 (71.4%) from three. He did it in 41 minutes, including 23:16 of the possible 24 in the second half—holding up well and scoring nine points in the fourth quarter, including the dagger: a corner three that pushed Boston’s lead to 11 with 1:26 to play.
The All-Star wing also tallied 10 rebounds and five assists. He became just the fifth player in Celtics playoff history to post at least 35 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists in a postseason game, joining Larry Bird (9x), Jayson Tatum (4x), John Havlicek (3x), and Paul Pierce (2x). Brown became the first to hit those marks while shooting at least 62% from the field.
Beyond the scoring, his presence on the glass and as a playmaker loomed large in a game without Jayson Tatum, who missed Game 2 due to a wrist injury. His defense shouldn’t be overlooked, either.
“At the end of the day, he’s willing to do whatever it takes for us to win,” added Mazzulla. “He didn’t come in saying he had to get to 36, 10, and 5. He came in and said, ‘I’m gonna do whatever it takes to win.’ That’s what he told me yesterday. That’s just the mindset that he has. Regardless of whether it’s going well for him or not, he can take it to another level. And he did that for us. I thought the guys kind of fed off of that.”
Brown said prior to Game 1 that he wouldn’t be on a minutes restriction in the playoffs. Still, it wasn’t clear just how much of his typical role he’d be able to shoulder—the guy who guards the opposition’s best guards and wings, sets the tone with physicality, and initiates offense in transition. No easy task on a banged-up knee.
There’s still a long way to go between now and June 5, the start of the NBA Finals—but if Game 2 was any indication, he’s more than up for the challenge.
“Obviously, he always transmits this kind of energy,” said Kristaps Porzingis. “He’s willing to leave it all out there for the team and sacrifice himself, his body, for the game. And everybody respects that. And he was leading us today on both ends. He was doing JB. That’s what we expect from him.”
Brown’s knee was the biggest question mark for the Celtics entering this postseason. However, the plan to get him right appears to have worked, though Brown doesn’t feel any vindication.
“Why would I?” He asked. “There’s another game to be played.”
Related
