Jaylen Brown took a test drive with the new-look Celtics following an offseason filled with tough decisions, new additions, and plenty of skepticism, to begin the team’s preseason campaign against the Grizzlies
on Wednesday night at FedExForum.
It’s nothing Brown hasn’t seen before, but it’s a different beast when the task is thrown onto the 2024 NBA Finals MVP’s plate from the start of Boston’s upcoming season. So when the Celtics and Grizzlies squared off to begin the preseason, Brown took the opportunity to give everyone a glimpse of what could come before officially entering his 10th season in Boston.
Brown joined Derrick White, Sam Hauser, Xavier Tillman, and Chris Boucher in head coach Joe Mazzulla’s starting lineup — and wasted zero time making an early (and promising) statement.
The 28-year-old leaned on his strength as Brown took the aggressive route to get on the scoreboard with a right-handed layup off the glass for his first basket. From there, Brown proceeded to score a team-leading 21 points in Boston’s 121-103 victory over Memphis, shooting 6-for-13 from the field across 20 first-half minutes on the floor.
It was also a testament to the environment that the Celtics have been establishing over at the Auerbach Center during their team practices.
“It’s intense. Physical, intense-pace,” Brown said after Monday’s practice, per CLNS Media. “I think the coaching staff has done a good job in setting the tempo and pace of the preseason. I think it’s probably been my hardest preseason that I’ve probably had from a conditioning standpoint and a physicality standpoint. But that’s what we’re gonna need this season.”
No stranger to getting physical when the opportunity presents itself, Brown is taking a very intentional approach. Since the team is undermanned and stripped of its championship talent, Brown wants to ensure that the crew’s identity is emphasized among everyone in the locker room.
“I want us to be the smartest team out there, the most studious team out there,” Brown added. “… We gotta make sure the comprehension level is there. We gotta make sure everybody knows what coverages, what reads that we need to be in actively every day. We’re emphasizing that cause we gotta be a smart team because we don’t have a choice.”
Preseason is preseason. Brown, however, was anything but preseason once Tillman won the jumpball at center court.
He was constantly active in search of shot selection, utilizing screens set by Neemias Queta and Luka Garza, all while drawing enough defensive attention from Memphis to allow teammates to find their groove, too. Brown didn’t force anything offensively, finishing 3-for-6 from 3-point range, and allowed White — who finished with 10 assists — to facilitate as the floor general.
Boston’s first-year newcomers got a front row seat and watched Brown put on an offensive clinic without breaking a sweat. Brown’s minute restrictions perhaps kept him from dropping a 40-bomb in Memphis, however, it wasn’t enough to prevent an inevitable blowout — even when Brown walked off the floor for good after leading the Celtics to a 68-45 lead at halftime.
Getting the new guys acclimated is of the highest importance, and that weight lies heavily on Brown’s shoulders. Nine years ago, Brown was in the same situation as a rookie, rummaging for minutes behind the Isaiah Thomas-led Celtics as a rookie fresh out of Cal. This time, Brown is responsible for ensuring that Boston’s offseason additions find their footing to keep a playoff hunt intact amid Tatum’s absence and he’s off to a strong start in his increased leadership role.
