Jaylen

Brown

While in Boston for the release of his signature sneaker, Brown said that he still has not decided on surgery to repair the partially torn meniscus in his right knee. “l got a lot of doctors I gotta get evaluated with — see the potential for surgery versus no surgery, wait to speak to the [Celtics] organization,” Brown said, according to Celtics Blog. “For now, it’s just rest and recovery. I’m taking a step back from a long season. Mentally, it was a lot of stuff going on.” With Jayson Tatum (Achilles) expected to miss a significant portion of the 2025-26 season, a healthy Brown would be Boston’s first scoring option if management keeps the roster intact.

This isn’t exactly a revelation to those who closely followed Brown throughout the season. It was obvious the 28-year-old small forward was playing through some knee pain for the last month of the regular season and playoffs. The Celtics star had received multiple injections in his knee to deal with the pain. Brown will be evaluated in the coming week to determine if surgery is needed. Depending on the course of action on Brown’s knee, the Celtics could be down another star with Jayson Tatum already having had surgery to repair a torn Achilles.

As good as Brown was in Game 5, he could not drum up a similar performance in Friday’s series finale. He committed seven turnovers, and with Jayson Tatum (Achilles) out, the Celtics could not afford to sit Brown despite his foul trouble. As a result, he was disqualified with about three minutes remaining in the third quarter. From a fantasy standpoint, Brown’s 2024-25 production did not align with his Yahoo! ADP (40), as he was only a top-75 player in eight-cat formats. Depending on what the Celtics’ front office does this offseason, with Tatum likely to miss most of the 2025-26 season, Brown’s ADP will likely be inflated next fall.

Brown is the other All-NBA player on the roster, and with Jayson Tatum (Achilles) done for the season, Boston needed to turn to Brown. He took advantage and was fantastic as both a scorer and a facilitator. Tatum had been Boston’s leader in assists in both the regular season and the playoffs, which is an underrated aspect of his game that the Celtics will miss. If Brown continues to dominate on offense like he did in this game Boston, will have a legitimate chance to win this series, even without Tatum.

Brown didn’t have his best game with 19 points on 18 shots, but in a game where the Celtics needed his scoring they’ll take that even if he got there on volume rather than efficiency. The 28-year-old small forward appears to be playing at less than 100 percent after dealing with a knee issue down the stretch of the regular season. While the Celtics were able to blowout the Knicks by 22 in Game 3, we still haven’t seen them win a close game late against New York. Boston will need all hands on deck including Brown if they find themselves in a dogfight against the Knicks in Game 4 Monday.

It was a tale of two halves for Brown, who entered the break with 17 points. In the second half, the only stats he contributed were one three-pointer and four turnovers. He shot 1-of-7 in the second half, and the Celtics blew a 20-point lead for a second straight game. They’ve been outscored by a total of four points in this series, but they will head to New York down 0-2. Brown will need to repeat his first-half performance for Boston to get back on track.

Brown and the Celtics were on the wrong end of a shocking result Monday night, as the reigning champs lost despite leading by as much as 20. Three-point shooting was a problem for the Celtics, as they shot a putrid 15-of-60 from beyond the arc. Brown finished 1-of-10 on the night, with that poor showing dragging down his overall field-goal percentage. When Boston’s three-point opportunities come within the flow of the offense, forcing opposing defenses into rotation, they’re elite. That wasn’t the case in the second half of Game 1, hence the defeat. Brown and the Celtics will look to even the series on Wednesday night.

Brown’s right knee continues to be an issue, but he logged 32 minutes in Game 5 and was efficient offensively. Boston taking care of business in five games will provide the banged-up champions with valuable rest before the second round begins. And this group made some franchise history, winning their fifth consecutive playoff series. That’s the sixth time the Celtics have accomplished that feat. However, the Brown/Tatum-led Celtics are the first to win all five series in five games or fewer. Next up for the reigning champs will be either New York or Detroit in the second round.

Brown is available after the Celtics listed him as questionable on the initial injury report. The reigning champions will only be without one starter, Jrue Holiday, for Tuesday’s game as they look to close out the Magic. Al Horford will remain the fifth starter.

Brown has been listed as questionable for a third straight game. He was able to suit up for the first two. After scoring 21 points in Game 4 on Sunday, expect Brown to once again be a reliable scoring option on Tuesday. If he isn’t able to play, Sam Hauser or Payton Pritchard would likely move into the starting lineup.