As Jaylen Brown checked out Monday night after putting the finishing touches on a 120-112 win over the Phoenix Suns, he was met with handshakes from Joe Mazzulla and Bill Chisholm.
It was a performance worthy of the moment.
Brown finished with 41 points on 10-of-20 shooting, pouring in 18 in the fourth quarter to fend off Phoenix. He added seven rebounds (tied for a game-high), four assists, a steal, and a block in 39:30.
“His ability to spread the floor, get into the paint, make plays for himself or others, combat their physicality with offensive physicality, and drives. I thought he took that challenge on and I thought he was great in it,” Mazzulla said. “Besides the 41 points, he made a big-time steal. Had some great deflections. I thought it was just a well-rounded game from him on both sides of the floor.”
Brown set the tone early with relentless aggression, getting to the free-throw line 10 times in the first quarter alone. He finished 19-for-21 from the stripe, the most makes and attempts by a Celtic in almost 19 years, since Paul Pierce went 19-for-21 on March 23, 2007, against the Mavericks.
“I approached the game the same,” Brown said. “Just physical, getting downhill. Playing off two feet. They made the calls tonight.”
The physicality and hustle never wavered.
Whether it was his constant downhill pressure or crashing into courtside seats trying to save a loose ball in the fourth, Brown did everything he could to will Boston to a win. The effort didn’t go unnoticed, as he was met with thunderous “MVP!” chants at the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, something that’s become increasingly common at TD Garden this season.
“It’s pretty cool, I’m not gonna lie,” Brown said of the MVP chants. “It’s pretty awesome to be at this point in my career and be able to get that love from the fans. It’s pretty awesome.”
The chants are well-earned.
Monday marked Brown’s sixth 40-point game of the season, the most in the Eastern Conference and third-most in the league. He has led Boston in scoring 44 times, averaging 28.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 5.1 assists, all career highs. That production has only been matched by Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic, placing Brown firmly in the MVP conversations.
“It’s been a great year. I’m extremely grateful,” Brown said. “I’m proud of my team, I’m proud of myself, all of the above. I’ve always felt like I could be one of the top players in the world [if] given the opportunity. And I feel like I got to display that this season. So now the focus is just to get ready for the playoffs.”
Of course, things change a little bit with Jayson Tatum back in the lineup. But as the early returns have shown, both can still thrive as high-usage players and scorers. If anything, they benefit from the attention each commands, though it requires sacrifice, especially in the midst of a career year.
“It takes some humility. It takes some understanding,” Brown said. “JT is extremely important to us for what we want to do. Obviously, I’m having a great season, but I have to think: what’s the big picture? And sometimes that’s not easy, but I always put the team and what the bigger picture is first. It’s just kind of a feel thing. You kind of feel it out. It takes some time. You know, when to be aggressive? How do teams guard? Kind of reassessing all of that stuff because it’s different, this team is different. But, it’s been ok. We’ve found ways to win, and we’ve just got to continue to do that.”
It’s no coincidence the Celtics are 4-1 when both Jays are available, and 4-0 when they start and finish. For years, they’ve consistently found ways to elevate each other, all in pursuit of the same goal: winning.
And they’ve done it at an elite level.
Together, they’ve won 395 games, including the playoffs. Their five Conference Finals appearances in eight years are more than the Magic, Timberwolves, Raptors, Hawks, Nets, Kings, Clippers, Pelicans, and Grizzlies have in their entire franchise histories.
Since they were paired, no team has won more playoff games.
“I think we’ve done a really good job of that the last nine years, especially probably this last like six,” Tatum said. “We’ve just found a way to really complement each other, on both ends of the floor, and win a bunch of basketball games, win a bunch of playoff series, and win a championship. It’s just something we’ve been doing for a long time.”
They understand that they give each other the best chance to accomplish the main goal. And that’s all they are focused on, pushing the personal accolades to the side.
“We can rely on one another in the biggest moments, in the biggest games, in the biggest situations,” Tatum said. “We’ve been through all of them together, and came out on top in most of them, and, you know, falling short a few times. But I know one thing is that when we step on that floor, we know that the other person is going to do whatever it takes to win.”
Even after eight years of proof (and an NBA Finals title in 2024), the question of whether they can truly coexist still lingers, somewhat inexplicably.
But through the highs and lows, Brown and Tatum have remained committed to growing together, consistently finding ways to make it work while understanding the value they bring to one another.
This year is no different.
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