No one is questioning the Jaylen Brown-Jayson Tatum duo these days, but that hasn’t always been the case.
Some suggested the Celtics franchise cornerstones needed to be split up while Boston was going through it over the first few months of the season. Furthermore, there was chatter that Brown and Tatum didn’t have the best relationship, even though both let it be known that narrative was inaccurate.
Hearing all of those reports and rumors probably was exhausting for Brown and Tatum, especially since both were at the forefront of trying to turn the Celtics’ season around. But as Brown explained in a recent interview with Abby Chin, those takes and accusations ultimately made a positive impact on Boston’s superstar tandem.
“Somebody asked a question in the media (recently), like, ‘Has all the media attention between you and Jayson kind of made you guys a little closer?’ And we were fine before,” Brown told Chin, as transcribed by NBC Sports Boston. “A lot of media reports were saying that we weren’t friends — I don’t know where that came from. I think a lot of people were just making stuff up. We were fine.
“And I think because of that, it made us maybe a little bit closer in a sense, in a weird way. I guess in a sense, to answer your question, our relationship has grown maybe because of that.”
The Celtics surely are hoping the strengthened bond between Brown and Tatum will continue to lead to success on the court this postseason. Boston’s first-round playoff series against the Brooklyn Nets begins Sunday afternoon at TD Garden.
