Mazzulla lauds Brown’s ‘intensity’ in dominant win over Magic originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The real Jaylen Brown showed up for the TD Garden crowd in Friday night’s emphatic Boston Celtics victory over the Orlando Magic.
It was a bounce-back performance for Brown, who looked out of sorts during the team’s stunning loss in Toronto. He totaled just 10 points on 4-of-16 shooting and looked uncharacteristically disengaged defensively in Wednesday’s 110-97 defeat.
Against Orlando, Brown notched 20 points — 13 in the third quarter — on 5-of-12 shooting and made all nine of his shots from the free-throw line. He added six assists and six rebounds while making a huge defensive impact with three steals.
Above all else, Brown’s effort level set the tone for a Celtics team that has looked lethargic over the last month. C’s coach Joe Mazzulla took notice and praised the 2024 NBA Finals MVP after Friday’s win.
“I liked just how he was thoroughly intense,” Mazzulla said. “I think that’s important for us. He brings a different level of a mentality to us at times, and I thought tonight he brought a great level of intensity.
“He had 20 points on 12 shots. He has the ability to impact the game without shooting. I thought he just impacted it in many different ways. Even toward the end of the game to close the game, he had the kick-ahead to Al (Horford) in the corner. So his ability to just impact the game in different ways and bring a high level of intensity is important for us to just continue to get better.”
Twenty points is a modest total by Brown’s standards, but his impact was felt far beyond the scoring column. While Jayson Tatum (30 points) and Kristaps Porzingis (23 points) knocked down shots, Brown thrived in a supporting role with heads-up plays on both ends of the floor.
After the win, Brown caught up with NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin to discuss his outing.
“For me, I was just trying to get my teammates going,” he said. “The game was kind of slow to start, so instead of just trying to force up shots, I just tried to get my teammates going and I feel like that helped us a little bit. …
“I’ve had to adjust. It’s a different year, and I just do what the team needs me to do. I’ve been able to evolve, do different things in my career. This team, I’m more of a playmaker so I just embrace it. Just get better in that role and just do what I do.”
Brown and the C’s will hope to carry the momentum from Friday’s win into the second night of their back-to-back Saturday vs. the Atlanta Hawks. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET at TD Garden.
