Much of last night’s Celtics’ win over the Thunder was a struggle for Jaylen Brown — he regularly grabbed at his strained left hand, missed shots he normally makes, and threw several uncharacteristically careless passes. Through three quarters, he had 5 turnovers and just 8 points on 4-14 shooting, one of his worst stretches of a career year.
But, all of that changed in the blink of an eye when Brown nearly single-handed turned a 10-point Celtics lead into a blowout in the opening minutes of the fourth.
“I feel like I had a s*** game tonight,” Brown said. “Just wasn’t feeling my best. But luckily, we’re on a great team that finds ways to win. I definitely feel like I played a little better in the fourth.”
In the final period alone, he had 15 points on 5-6 shooting, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal —and no turnovers. During that stretch, he also spearheaded several big defensive stops, effectively ending any Thunder hopes of a comeback.
Jaylen Brown just completely turned his night around — 15 fourth quarter points to turn this one into a blowout and he gets a big ovation from the crowd as he checks out. pic.twitter.com/BsYKDj0zuU
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzellNBA) April 4, 2024
The key for Brown was staying engaged all night despite not getting into a great offensive flow.
“He’s taken it upon himself to understand ways he can impact the game, other than scoring,” Mazzulla said. “He’s taking pride in being a two-way player, being a cerebral player as well as his physical abilities. Because of his work ethic and his mindset, he’s able to do that.”
Mazzulla pointed to a handful of plays early on that signaled to him that his three-time All-Star was still locked in despite some offensive struggles, including attempting to take a charge against Chet Holmgren and getting a block in the closing seconds of the half.
“It might not be going to your expectations offensively,” Mazzulla said. “How can you still impact the game? He’s taken pride in that.”
After the game, Al Horford endorsed Brown for a spot on the All-Defense Team — an honor that Brown has sporadically campaigned for throughout the year.
“Being very unbiased, very clear, he’s First Team All-Defense,” Horford said. “You look at what he’s doing individually, and the impact he’s having on the defensive end — we’re one of the best defenses in the league, the best record, and he deserves to be in that position.”
Jaylen Brown on his renewed focus on defense:
“I’ve always been a good defender, but we’ve had over the years guys that took majority of the match-ups, like Smart.”
“This year, I wanted to re-emphasize that I was going to be the one taking on those match-ups.” pic.twitter.com/EOiKFCHlV5
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzellNBA) April 4, 2024
Part of Brown’s earlier struggled seemed connected to the sprained left hand that kept him out of Monday’s win over the Hornets. On multiple occasions, it appeared the injury was bothering him, but he said postgame it was not cause for concern.
“I think I got a sprain or a strain on a ligament in my hand,” Brown said. “But I think it’s fine, something I’m not really concerned with going forward. It bothered me a little bit tonight. Part of it is playing through it because it gives you more information, but I think it’s nothing to be concerned about.”
So, he played through the discomfort of the strain and turned on the heat in the fourth quarter, a challenge he felt was good preparation for the postseason.
“Mental fortitude and just preparing your mind for the challenges that come,” Brown said when asked of his mindset in the victory. “You might be in a playoff game where you’re not feeling well and banged up, hand hurt or back hurt or whatever the case may be. Ain’t nobody around here wants to hear no excuses. Tonight was the opportunity to prepare for some of those moments, things not going your way, stay locked in and the time may change at any given point.”
