Jaylen Brown Opens Up About Previous ‘Sacrificing’ For Celtics
After years of playing second fiddle, Brown is Boston's top dog
For most of his Boston Celtics career, Jaylen Brown has had to sacrifice a little. He’s often played second fiddle to Jayson Tatum, giving up touches, shots, rebounds and other personal stats.
He sacrificed even more during the last two seasons when other stars like Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday joined the team. There’s only one basketball, after all, forcing him to take a backseat at times.
As with the Celtics’ “Big Three” of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, however, that sacrifice was worth it and paid off with a championship. Boston won it all in 2024, netting Brown his first ring.
Two seasons later, however, Boston is a totally different team. Porzingis, Holiday, Al Horford and Luke Kornet are all gone, while Tatum is out with an Achilles injury. Brown is the team’s undisputed top scorer now, as the Celtics have asked him to shoot more rather than less.
It’s working out pretty well for them, as Brown’s responded with the best season of his career. He’s playing at an MVP level while leading Boston to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, proving once and for all that he can carry a team without Tatum.
Brown spoke about that at length after Monday’s 102-94 win over the Portland Trail Blazers at TD Garden.
“I felt like I’ve sacrificed over the years in order for us to be a championship-caliber team. And I think now, we’re getting to see that a little bit. What exactly I was capable of, and what I was sacrificing,” Brown told reporters.
“I think, before, maybe it wasn’t so obvious. I think now, being able to be at the helm of things, and us being the second seed in the East, versus last year we finished second seed in the East. It’s almost been no dropoff with four players, five players that are essentially gone,” Brown added. “The work from the coaching staff. The work from our leadership has has been great. And you know, I just try to make myself available every single night.”
The Celtics’ success this season wouldn’t be possible without Brown’s two-way excellence on a nightly basis. He’s put the team on his back, just like he did when he won Eastern Conference Finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP two years ago.
