Jaylen Brown Needs the Ball

The Boston Celtics have been eliminated from the playoffs. After nearly four months in Orlando, the Celtics were eliminated by the Miami Heat in six games. Depending on what your expectations were for the C’s, their playoff run was either a success or a disappointment. ESPN and 538 had the Celtics around a 47-win team, with little hope of going deep in the playoffs. In reality, they were on pace to win around 56 games (before the stoppage), swept their division rival in Philadelphia (albeit playing without one of their stars) and knocked off the reigning NBA champions. In that respect, the season was a success. However, despite the series being competitive, many analysts assumed the Celtics would defeat the Heat. Instead, Miami outlasted Boston down the stretch to close it off. In the wake of their elimination, there’s going to be a lot of diagnosis. Why, despite leading for most of the series, did Boston collapse late in games? Why were the rotations so questionable? Why didn’t they move the ball more? Why couldn’t they stay aggressive down the stretch? Why couldn’t Boston get the job done? I would like to offer a suggestion: Jaylen Brown hasn’t gotten the number of shots he deserves.

Jaylen Brown deserved to be an All-Star this season. And he kept proving that throughout the Playoffs. I would argue he was the best Celtics player in the Miami series, or at least the most consistent. He has an elite skill-set that changes the momentum of games in key moments. He shoots 50% from the field and just under 40% from 3. He is elite at attacking the basket, finishing 70% of shots from 0–3 ft. And his mid-range fade-away would impress even Michael Jordan. He is one of the best 2-way defenders in the league, no better exemplified than by him completely locking up Pascal Siakam in the second round. By almost every measure, Jaylen Brown is one of the best players in the league. And it is for this reason he needs to be the #2 options on Boston moving forward.

It’s well understood at this point that Jayson Tatum is the best player on the Celtics. Even though he’s only 22 years old, everyone around the league knows he’s going to be the primary option moving forward. The #2 however? That to me is in question. Kemba Walker is a great player. He’s crafty when getting to the rim, he’s a great 3 point shooter, and he is able to make unbelievable passes to open guys for easy buckets. But during the second and third round of the playoffs this year, his limitations were exposed. First is was against Toronto, where the Box and 1 all but neutralized his effectiveness in that series. Then it was against Miami, where the Heat were able to get favorable switches from Bam and Butler onto him in the post, and he never really seemed to get going offensively. To me, he reminds me of another All-Star Boston point guard who eventually won a championship, Tiny Archibald. I think the approach to offense moving forward should be for Kemba to focus on setting up other players instead of looking to shoot. Those touches instead can go to Jaylen, who when attacking the rim is very difficult to stop.

Part of the diagnosis here falls on coaching. Some of this will sound like blame on Brad Stevens. Although I think people forget just how young even he is. At 43, he’s been coaching Boston since 2013–14 season. Since then, he’s taken one of the worst rosters in the league to being a premier title contender in the Eastern Conference for the last couple of seasons. His best players are under the age of 25. That’s remarkable for any organization. But in the wake of defeat, people always point the finger. However, I will concede the rotation at times has been very questionable. Jaylen only having 17 shots in an elimination game is not acceptable. Especially after he came off a 28-point performance a few nights prior. And I can’t be sure, but I feel like Marcus Smart has something to do with it. Not enough can be said about how important Smart is to the Celtics. But at the same time, he has some questionable decisions on offense. If his first couple three’s go in, he’ll keep shooting the rest of the night. Those attempts, while game-changing at times, rob Jaylen of opportunities to score. It is important to remember that while Smart is a great piece that any championship team would love to have, the Celtics will not reach the Finals off his back. It will have to be Jaylen. Brad needs to make a point to take the ball away from Smart and give it to Jaylen.

Jaylen Brown needs to become the definitive #2 option on the Celtics moving forward. That change will not only have the Celtics in a better position to win games; but will also further develop Brown’s talent. It’s not crazy to think there is another level for him to reach. The play-making ability still needs to be developed. He could be a top 15 player in the league. But that only happens when the ball is in his hands. This fundamental change will have a positive impact on the Celtics moving forward.