On Wednesday, Jaylen Brown did not make the list of 15 players who were voted to this year’s three All-NBA Teams, finishing 16th in voting and first in the biggest snub race.
On Thursday, he tied his playoff career high with 40 points in the Celtics’ 126-110 Game 2 win over the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden. It was his second career 40-point game in the Eastern Conference Finals. The list of players who have done that is just five names long, and the only two who have done it more than twice are LeBron James and Michael Jordan.
That first list would have helped Brown’s individual resume. The second helps the Celtics get another step closer to Banner 18. Brown’s priorities are in the right order.
“We’re two games from the Finals. Honestly, I don’t got the time to give a f***,” Brown said when asked about not making an All-NBA Team.
Brown’s teammates and coaches had a little more time to speak on his behalf. Like many, they were surprised to see Brown get snubbed.
“We all felt like internally that he should have made an All-NBA Team, so it was a shame to see that he didn’t,” Jayson Tatum said.
They were not surprised that Brown remained more focused on winning games than winning votes.
“I think he cares about it in a way that motivates him, and I think he doesn't really care about it at all because he understands that winning is the most important thing,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.
Brown put on a clinic Thursday night. He was efficient, shooting 14-of-27 from the field. He knocked down threes (4-of-10 from beyond the arc), but he also consistently got inside, scoring 16 points in the paint and another eight at the free-throw line.
Brown twice took the lead on extending Boston’s lead. In the second quarter, with the game tied 27-27, Brown had an offensive rebound and put-back to put the Celtics ahead. Over the next three minutes, he would knock down a three, finish off a fast-break layup, and hit three free throws as part of a larger 20-0 Celtics run that ultimately pushed their lead to 15.
Late in the third quarter, after the Pacers had pulled within six, Brown drilled a corner three, then drove the lane and dished to Oshae Brissett for a layup, and then stole the ball from Pascal Siakam and finished off a breakaway layup. Just like that, a 7-0 run and the lead was back to 13. The Pacers wouldn’t get it down to single digits the rest of the night.
“Just making the right play,” Mazzulla said when asked about Brown’s night. “Poise, patience, discipline, proper actions, getting the right spacing and getting to his spots really well, whether in transition or in the half-court. He just continues to get better and better. Takes a lot of pride in his ability to impact the game in different ways, and I thought he did that tonight.”
Brown is certainly putting his mark on these Eastern Conference Finals. He was also the hero of Game 1, forcing a Pacers turnover in the final 10 seconds of regulation and then hitting the corner three that sent the game to overtime, setting the stage for Tatum’s OT takeover that sealed the victory.
“I mean, he has it going,” Jrue Holiday said of Brown. “Y’all see what I see. Great player, great leader, but wants to win and takes things into his own hands. So, having a guy like that on my side, I love it. … The way JB has been playing, man, is outstanding.”
That outstanding play has helped the Celtics take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals. If it continues, they’ll be playing for a championship and, as Brown so bluntly put it, no one will “give a f***” about the All-NBA Teams.