Jaylen Brown turned pain into galvanization Tuesday night at TD Garden.
Brown took a smack to the head midway through the third quarter of the Celtics' matchup with the Rockets. Kevin Porter Jr. tried to block Brown's shot as the latter elevated right outside the paint, but the Houston guard's swat landed right across the Boston star's face. Porter was issued a flagrant-one foul for his actions.
"I just took a shot to the head, I can't remember what happened," Brown told reporters after the game, per NBC Sports Boston. "I didn't even see the play. But you know, it hurt. I'll tell you that."
Brown looked like a man possessed after the incident, scoring 12 third-quarter points en route to a season-high 39 in the Celtics' 126-102 win. The seventh-year pro looked back on the smack as a turning point in his productive outing.
"Sometimes you get smacked in the face, it's exactly what you need during the middle of a game," Brown told reporters. "Like, 'Jaylen, what the hell are you doing?' Smack in the face and then proceed to score the ball."
Brown will look to build off his big night Thursday when Boston hosts the Los Angeles Clippers.
