Coming off embarrassing losses to Cleveland and Sacramento, the Celtics needed a win in the worst way against Orlando and, thanks to a career shooting night from All-Star Jaylen Brown, they did precisely that. The C’s emphatically snapped their three-game losing skid Sunday, torching the Magic in a resounding 112-96 victory at TD Garden. Brown’s 10 makes from downtown accounted for nearly half of Boston’s three-point output (season-high 23 trifectas). Those 10 triples also set a career-high for Brown, who said he felt like Warriors marksman Steph Curry during Sunday’s outburst.
While teammate Jayson Tatum gets most of the glory (and endorsements), Brown has quietly been the Celtics’ most complete player this season, contributing in all facets while also displaying incredible efficiency. Brown’s 34 points Sunday were his most since a 42-point effort at Philadelphia on January 22nd.
As poorly as Boston has played (13-18 since an 8-3 start), the reeling Celtics are only a game behind Atlanta for fourth in the Eastern Conference, which would net them home-court advantage in the first round. Of course, they’re also just a half-game clear of the Knicks for seventh place. Remember, teams seeded 7-10 this year are subject to a “play-in” tournament, posing yet another obstacle in what has already been a trying season for the underachieving C’s.
We’ll see if Brown can channel his inner Curry again Monday night at Memphis before the Celtics head north to Milwaukee for a two-game slate against the Bucks and reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo later this week.
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