Jaylen Brown didn't just come through with a career performance in the Celtics' comeback win over the Magic Sunday. The young All-Star provided the Celtics with a new mantra that should carry them through the season.
The Celtics outlasted Orlando in overtime 116-111, but the game shouldn't have been that close. The Magic were playing without their top scorer, Cole Anthony, and featured a relatively nameless roster. For three quarters, it looked like the Celtics were going to follow their wire-to-wire victory over the Suns with another embarrassing defeat.
Then Brown came alive. He dropped 21 of his career-high 50 points in the fourth quarter, rallying the Celtics back from a 14-point deficit. Brown opposed overtime with his fifth three-pointer of the game, setting the tempo for the decisive period.
Afterwards, Brown shared an important mantra to the assembled press: "We just needed to f—ing win."
That's the kind of message that should be printed on t-shirts and handed out to every fan at the Garden, along with Covid-mandated face coverings. The Celtics were playing Sunday without Jayson Tatum or Robert Williams III. With a contract north of $100 million, it was up to Brown to put the team on his back and lead.
That's exactly what happened. We haven't seen much of that over the last two years.
At 18-19, the Celtics need to start f— winning if they're going to save their season, and maybe the future of the Brown and Tatum core.
Brown played like a man on a mission Sunday. It might just be one win over the woebegone Magic, but perhaps it will set the tone for the new year.
