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Simply seconds into Sport 1, Jaylen Brown wished to set the tone for the Celtics first-round collection in opposition to the Hawks, and hopefully, the remainder of what Boston believes will probably be an extended playoff run. Proper after the tip, Brown stole a routine move from Trae Younger to Dejounte Murray after which overpowered John Collins on the opposite finish.
“I used to be going loopy in my head. I used to be screaming like, ‘there you go. That’s what I’m speaking about,’” Marcus Good mentioned of Brown’s assertion play. “Jaylen can do loads of issues, not simply rating the ball. He’s an incredible two-way participant and we’re going to want that out of him. And to see how he was locked in and able to go, it was thrilling.”
He’s nonetheless sporting a masks after a pleasant hearth elbow from Jayson Tatum over two months in the past, however as robust as he’s performed during the last two months, perhaps it’s right here to remain. Brown would end the sport as Boston’s excessive scorer with 29 factors (12-of-23 from the sphere) and three assists.
After lacking the ultimate two video games of the common season with a land laceration, he picked up proper the place he left off. After main Workforce LeBron in scoring within the All-Star Sport, Brown mounted an All-NBA marketing campaign within the remaining 20-plus video games averaging 27 factors and over six rebounds and 4 assists a sport.
Brown admitted after the Sport 1 win that his finger remains to be a problem. “It’s a relentless adjustment ensuring I get a great grip on the ball,” Brown mentioned. “I had six turnovers tonight, so I positively obtained to scrub that up.” Through the sport, he left for the locker room briefly when the minimize break up open. He obtained 5 stitches on the finger and missed observe throughout early postseason prep.
“He was making an attempt to determine tips on how to play with it at first. He needed to change his Bandaid, I consider,” head coach Joe Mazzulla mentioned. “I assumed he performed nicely. I assumed his shot choice was good. I assumed he was intentional on the defensive finish. I assumed he did an incredible job on being locked in on each ends of the ground.”
It had been 303 days for the reason that Celtics misplaced Sport 6 of The NBA Finals on the parquet ground. That playoff run is formally within the rearview with this postseason now in full swing. It took an 82-game marathon of a daily season to get right here and this staff is aware of all too nicely that one steal is only a steal and one win is only a win.
“Every sport is its personal story. We count on to get their finest shot subsequent sport. Can’t take a staff without any consideration,” Brown mentioned. “We allowed them to get somewhat extra comfy within the second half. I count on the subsequent sport for them to be somewhat extra ready, so we obtained to be somewhat extra ready as nicely.”
What is going to hopefully be a relentless all through these subsequent few weeks and months is their mindset. After just a few speedbumps tripped them up through the yr (that in the end value them the general #1 seed), Brown understands the urgency of the second.
“It’s a good time of the yr. It’s the time we’ve been excited about, ready round for. It was extraordinarily necessary to set the tone right here on our house ground opening up the playoffs. I assumed we obtained off to an incredible begin within the first half. Second half, we took our foot off the fuel somewhat bit, however we simply gotta proceed and play basketball for 48 minutes and proceed to construct good habits all through the playoffs.”
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