It was well worth waiting just a little bit longer for Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown.
After missing out on being named a starter for the NBA All-Star Game last week, Brown found out he’ll still attend the NBA’s marquee exhibition event when he was announced Thursday as one of the reserves for the Eastern Conference.
It is the second time the 26-year-old’s seven-year career that he has been elected as an All-Star, with the last time coming in 2021.
Brown will join Jayson Tatum, who was named a starter, at the festivities and it’s possible the two Celtics teammates face one another with teams being picked by captains LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo before the contest. Celtics interim head coach Joe Mazzulla will coach Team Giannis, but he severely downplayed the significance of earning that honor, which led to Marcus Smart calling him out.
Brown is in the midst of one of his best seasons as pro. He’s tallying a career-high 27 points per game — up nearly three-and-a-half points from last season — on 49.1% shooting from the floor. He has also grabbed 7.1 rebounds and dished out 3.2 assists per game.
There were six other players named reserves from the Eastern Conference alongside Brown with Bam Adebayo, DeMar DeRozan, Joel Embiid, Julius Randle, Tyrese Haliburton and Jrue Holiday garnering the recognition.
With Tatum and Brown both being named All-Stars, it only continues to solidify that the Celtics have one of the best, if not the top, duo in the entire league.
The NBA All-Star Game will take place Feb. 19 at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City.
