Jaylen Brown has been overshadowed by Boston Celtics teammate Jayson Tatum.
It’s not Brown’s fault. Or Tatum’s, really.
Tatum has been otherworldly over the last few weeks. The 21-year-old forward has scored 30 or more point in six of his nine games, including three consecutive 30-plus performances while shooting at an incredibly high clip.
Tatum should be named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week when the first post-All-Star break honor is revealed. And Brown would be happy about that.
“You’ve gotta want for your brother what you would want for yourself,” Brown said after the Celtics defeated the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday, per the team.
But in reality, Brown’s increased production from last year to this one, and especially over the last few weeks, has been equally impressive. Impressively consistent, too.
Most recently, Brown scored 20 or more points four times during the Celtics’ four-game road trip. The Tatum-Brown duo helped the Celtics go 3-1 during the stretch with their only loss being a two-point defeat to LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers. Brown’s offensive production was all the more needed with point guard Kemba Walker out due to knee soreness.
During the trip, Brown finished with 20 points on 50 percent shooting against the Utah Jazz, 24 points on 8-for-19 shooting against the Portland Trail Blazers, 20 points on 8-for-19 shooting against the Lakers and 25 points on 10-for-17 shooting against the Minnesota Timberwolves. It elevated the Celtics to 23-5 this year when Brown scores 20-plus points.
He defense was exceptional during the trip too.
In 48 games this season, Brown is shooting a career-best 49.4 percent from the floor including 38.3 percent from deep. Both are improvements, as Brown shot 46.5 percent from the field each of the last two years and 34.4 percent from three during the 2018-19 season. He averages a career-high 20.4 points per game, which is an increase of 7.4 points per game from last year.
Additionally, Brown has contributed career-highs in rebounds (6.4), assists (2.1), steals (1.1), while his confidence in attacking the rim is depicted by the fact he’s shooting 4.3 free throws per game, another stark contrast (2.7) from last year.
And while Tatum has been the Celtics’ best 1-on-1 scorer of recent, especially with Walker missing the last few games, Brown has showcased the ability to take over games in needed spots. It’s not always the fourth quarter, not always crunch time, but it’s certainly complemented the effort.
Most recently, in Boston’s 11-point win over the Jazz on Wednesday, Brown did that. He ignited a late third-quarter run with Tatum on the bench, ultimately helping the C’s go from down by one to leading by six as he had a hand in 12 of 14 Celtics’ points.
Also on the trip, Brown scored six straight points during the fourth quarter against the T-Wolves to help the C’s keep some distance and contributed 10 fourth-quarter points with a pair of 3-pointers against the Lakers, despite it coming in a loss.
Brown will surely continue to be a key piece if the Celtics want to make a deep run in the postseason. He’ll be given another chance to shine, next to Tatum, as the Celtics host the Houston Rockets at TD Garden on Saturday.
