Jaylen Brown let his play do the talking in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals after being snubbed from the 2023-24 All-NBA teams.
The Boston Celtics star erupted for 40 points to propel his team to a 126-110 victory over the Indiana Pacers. The performance was a perfect response to his glaring omission, and his comments after the game were the cherry on top.
“I mean, we’re two games away from the Finals, so honestly, I don’t have the time to give a f—,” Brown said.
That’s what C’s fans want to hear, but Brown would have had every reason to voice his frustration with not being one of the 15 All-NBA selections. The three-time All-Star, who made second-team All-NBA last year, is coming off the best season of his career on both ends of the floor.
ESPN’s Tim Welsh weighed in on Brown’s All-NBA snub and if you ask him, Brown isn’t a top-15 NBA player — he’s top 10.
“You can’t have a season like the Celtics have and not have a second All-Star, and that’s what he is. He is a top-10 player in my mind,” Welsh said on Friday’s Early Edition.
“A year ago I was wondering, should they give him the ($286.23 million) contract? Will he live up to that contract? He has. He’s improved in the offseason, he’s gotten better, he is laser locked-in right now and I think he absolutely should be a top-15 player.”
Brown has been Boston’s most efficient all-around player during the 2024 playoff run. We can’t expect many more 40-point outbursts, but is his high level of play sustainable for the remainder of the postseason?
“I think it is. I think he’s grown into just a terrific all-around player,” Welsh answered. “And I was a critic last year as well. No left hand, you wondered in the offseason is he focused? … Yes, he’s been. He worked. He got into the gym.
“I was at some of the preseason practices. He stayed after, he was working on the left hand. And not only basketball IQ, but his leadership. I think he’s become a leader. With the departure of Marcus Smart, it’s allowed him to spread his wings and you’ve seen that here in the playoffs.”
Brown’s work has clearly paid off, and it could end up being the difference for the C’s on their road to Banner 18.
He’ll look to pick up where he left off when the series shifts to Indiana on Saturday for Game 3. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET, and coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. with Celtics Pregame Live on NBC Sports Boston.
