BOSTON — In the third quarter of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals, Indiana’s Pascal Siakam threw a pass that Pacers teammate TJ McConnell mishandled. One moment was enough for Jaylen Brown. The Celtics star threw the ball, leaving McConnell in his wake and finishing off Siakam’s foul.
As Brown stood in front of the tape, chants usually reserved for Jayson Tatum filled TD Garden: “MVP! MVP!”
It was a fitting recognition for Brown, who was 24 hours away from an All-NBA snub. He scored a game-high 40 points in the 126-110 victory, giving the Celtics a 2-0 lead in a series now bound for Game 3 in Indiana.
“He cares about the right things, but I think those kinds of things motivate him,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.
Did the snub motivate Brown’s playoff career?
“We’re two games away from the final,” Brown added, “so honestly, I don’t have time to give a shit.”
He never broached the subject with his teammates during morning shootaround, but “We all felt internally that he should have made the All-NBA teams, so it was a shame to see that ‘He didn’t do it,’ Tatum said.
Although Thursday was a statement for Brown, the night couldn’t have been worse for Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton, whose All-NBA third-team selection was one of several that pushed Brown from the honor this season. During the same third quarter, Haliburton aggravated the left hamstring injury that had kept him sidelined for 10 games earlier in the season. His status for the remainder of the series remains in question.
“We’ll know more tomorrow and even more on Saturday,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said in response to a question about the status of his point guard, who finished with 10 points and eight assists in 28 minutes.
Haliburton’s selection to the All-NBA team puts him in contention for a supermax contract, similar to the one Brown signed last summer, when he became the highest-paid player in the league. Brown’s five-year, $286 million extension was all about timing. He was the only All-NBA selection from last year to have to sign a new contract. The next contract signed by an All-NBA veteran (i.e. Tatum) will trump Brown’s, and so on.
Yet Brown has caught hell for being paid like his brothers, if only because outsiders don’t view him on the same level as the game’s greats. He can’t even dribble with his left hand, they said, and there was some truth to last season’s loss in the Eastern Conference finals to the eighth-seeded Miami Heat. So what did Brown do? He improved his control, elevating his game, as he has done for eight years now.
“I watch guys get praised and anointed. I feel like they’re half as talented as me on both sides of the ball,” Brown said, “but at this point in my life, I accept it .It comes from being who I am and what I stand for, and I’m not really changing that. And I’m grateful to get out there every night and do my best. every year, and whether people like it or not, that’s the way it is.”
What a luxury Brown is for these Celtics. Tatum, a first-team All-NBA member, struggled to start Game 2, scoring four points on eight shots in the first half, so Boston turned to its closest facsimile. Brown scored 17 of his 40 points in the second quarter, when the Celtics opened on a 17-0 run that changed the outcome. As Indiana’s defense shifted its focus from Tatum to Brown, the Celtics’ senior star highlighted his improved passing skills. His two assists belied the number of opportunities his play created.
“He made the right play,” said Mazzulla, who expects the NBA’s tracking of Brown’s potential and assists to better reflect the severity of his Game 2. “That’s the biggest thing important.”
What’s important about Brown is often lost in discussions about the NBA. He’s not Boston’s leading scorer, but only 18 players have averaged more than him this season. He’s not Boston’s primary defender, but only 13 players received more votes on the All-Defensive First Team than this season. Only Anthony Davis, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander can consider themselves better than Brown in both areas.
“I don’t take it for granted,” Brown said. “I keep it in perspective, no matter what is said or whatever the narrative or the discourse is around me. I just try to go out and add value on both ends of the court, and I have the “I feel like, when it comes down to it, there aren’t many better people in this league.”
When it comes to Brown, for some reason we feel the need to point out his flaws compared to what we imagine he could be as a leader of his own team, rather than recognizing how he has integrated his talents in this team – a 64-year-old player. win one, too. Already second to Tatum, Brown’s role further diminished when the Celtics acquired Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porziņģis in the offseason. As easy as we think it is to assimilate into a team full of stars, it’s harder than we think to be just as effective with fewer opportunities.
Except that’s precisely what Brown did. His scoring may be down, but his percentages are right in line with last season, when his 26.6 points per game ranked ninth in the league. His 3.6 assists per game this season is a career high. He often takes on the responsibility of defending the opponent’s best wing, relieving Tatum of that responsibility. Its usage is declining and its winning shares are increasing. It’s Jaylen Brown.
All of this ignores virtually unprecedented explosiveness.
Each new season is Brown’s best, and it was all on display Thursday. He came back on a 3-pointer against Indiana’s Obi Toppin. He sneaked behind the defense for an alley-oop. He bullied Siakam – a not-so-easily intimidated All-NBA talent – in the paint. He split two defenders in the pick-and-roll and finished around another. He stationed smaller defenders and took the bigger ones to the perimeter, only to pass by them.
“He did it,” said Celtics guard Jrue Holiday, who finished Game 2 with 15 points and 10 more assists. “You all see what I see. A great player, a great leader, he wants to win and takes charge. Having a guy like him by my side, I love it. I ride for him. The way JB play, man, it’s exceptional.”
All-NBA may not be in the cards for Brown this season, but the Eastern Conference Finals MVP is now on the line.
News Source : sports.yahoo.com
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