What’s up with JB?

[W8ting2McHale]

There’s a rumor going around in certain circles that JB is mad about getting an all-star snub and is therefore disengaged. Supposedly the big scoring games before all-star break were him showing out that he deserved being selected, and now he’s hurt and pouting.

I guess that circle has expanded to here. (Sad clown face)

[Vermont Green]

I wish I had looked closer at this before my previous post.  I would have been even more definitive.  He has only played in 2 games since he went down in the Atlanta game:

BKN:   21 pts  3-6 3s  2-2 FT  1 TO  35 min
CHA    15 pts  1-8 3s  2-5 FT  4 TO  36 min

So one good game against a really good team after missing about a week and one subpar game 3 days later.  Recency bias I guess.  Sometimes with injuries like this, it is not the first game back but how you recover and play after that first game.  Back at it for him (likely) tomorrow.  Hopefully he can bounce back.  If he goes out and plays like he did in CHA for the next few games, then I will start to worry.  For now, I am not worried one bit.

Nor am I the least bit worried that this All-Star "snub" is going to be in his head and affect his play moving forward.  Nothing in the way that Jaylen Brown has conducted himself in the last several seasons indicates that he would be that temperamental.  More likely he is going to see this chatter and get mad and put up 35 against Detroit.  Tatum and Smart will probably push the ball to him to help with that.  Or he just ignores it and goes about his business (actually more likely).

[Goldstar88]

Ever tried playing a sport with a jacked up ankle?

Yep, basketball and tennis. Then I discovered ankle braces, never had a bad ankle sprain again. Have no idea why most NBA players choose not to wear them.

[Vermont Green]

Ever tried playing a sport with a jacked up ankle?

Yep, basketball and tennis. Then I discovered ankle braces, never had a bad ankle sprain again. Have no idea why most NBA players choose not to wear them.

Yes also, and I was always surprised that there are actually two stages of recovery.  First is the healing but than there is restoring the strength around whatever was injured.  Brown only missed a short amount of time and he is a young, elite athlete but he still likely lost some strength in the muscles around his ankle/foot during the healing process.  I wouldn't expect more than a couple of games in this case but it has only been a couple of games.

[LilRip]

We can point to the ankle injury, yes, but I also think the team’s style of play hasn’t done him any favors. The team is clearly revolving around Tatum (who has risen to the challenge). Not the Tatum-Brown, your-turn-my-turn iso ball which we saw earlier in the year. And I said this before and I’ll say it again here: Tatum and Brown don’t maximize each other. Not to say they can’t play together but Brown is overqualified for what he’s being asked to do.

That said, Brown does get heavily featured early in the game, and he’s the primary scoring option when Tatum is on the bench. He’s still arguably our most important player after Tatum and we will need him to come up big in the playoffs because teams will be routinely throwing double teams at Tatum, which means Brown can operate against a softer defense

[Sophomore]

Ever tried playing a sport with a jacked up ankle?

Yep, basketball and tennis. Then I discovered ankle braces, never had a bad ankle sprain again. Have no idea why most NBA players choose not to wear them.

Aren’t they taping their ankles? That used to be the drill but I’m a dinosaur; maybe they don’t do that anymore

[Goldstar88]

I look at this just the opposite.  We have been playing very well the last 5 or whatever games and in those games, Jaylen Brown has not played his best or even his average.  We have several seasons of track record, including an all-star selection to know what to expect from a healthy Jaylen Brown but people want to forget that and panic over 5 games of post injury play (which really hasn't even been all that bad, just not the all star level we have come to expect)?

The way I look at it is I know that Jaylen Brown is good and if we are this good with him playing subpar, think how good we are going to be when he inevitably returns to "normal".  This has been an up and down season for him for a variety of reasons (mostly due to injuries) but I am not about to give up on Jaylen Brown.  He is a really good player.  The focus should be to get him right for the playoffs, whatever that means.  Playing through it, rest, whatever, just get him right and let him do his thing.

I agree with all of this. I definitely don’t want to trade him and he definitely gets leeway for the ankle injury. He’s a huge asset for us.

I still think it’s fair to point out that he’s often looked like our weakest starter recently. He’s clearly behind Tatum. I think he’s behind Smart because elite defense and orchestrating an offense matter. I have him behind Rob because elite defense, efficiency and not turning the ball over matter. He’s probably been better than Al, but Al has looked great as of late and has been playing elite D and doing all the little things.

Calling it how you see it isn’t the same thing as being worried or down on JB. Maybe it’s nitpicking, but I think we’re a contender for the finals and JB is crucial to that kind of result, so I’m hoping he return to the top tier form that we’ve all seen from him.

Thank you. This was the point of the original post and you hit the nail on the head. It wasn’t an attack on JB at all. TP

[Goldstar88]

Ever tried playing a sport with a jacked up ankle?

Yep, basketball and tennis. Then I discovered ankle braces, never had a bad ankle sprain again. Have no idea why most NBA players choose not to wear them.

Aren’t they taping their ankles? That used to be the drill but I’m a dinosaur; maybe they don’t do that anymore

Not sure, I know Steph Curry wears actual braces and I have to imagine that they provide a lot more stability/protection vs tape.

[Roy H.]

He looked particularly surly last night.  He was probably irritated that his shot wasn't falling.  I'm not worried at all.

But, to start a conspiracy theory:  he's undoubtedly disengaged because JT is getting all of the attention.  That, combined with his recent TED talk and reelection as NBAPA VP shows that he's not focused on winning.  We need to explore trading him this off-season before the inevitable blowup.

[celts55]

I believe his ankle plays into it, but he’s certainly not the only player to go through a slump. There’s been times when this same post could have been written about Tatum. Horford started the year well, than looked old for quite some time. Looking great now. Wasn’t long ago people wanted Smart out of town. It’s a long season. Slumps happen. Only fairly consistent concern I have with him is his free throw shooting. For someone with his stroke, he should be above 80%.
I have no doubt people will be taking about him being an all star before long

[nickagneta]

Slump. It's happened to just about everyone on the roster. He'll get through it.

But do notice during this slump, which started around the beginning of February, he has been putting up 4.4 assists per game with only 2.6 turnovers per game. Before that Jaylen was dishing out only 3 assist per game with 2.8 turnovers per game

So, although his shooting has been off, his playmaking has gotten really good. 

[Vermont Green]

I still think it’s fair to point out that he’s often looked like our weakest starter recently. He’s clearly behind Tatum. I think he’s behind Smart because elite defense and orchestrating an offense matter. I have him behind Rob because elite defense, efficiency and not turning the ball over matter. He’s probably been better than Al, but Al has looked great as of late and has been playing elite D and doing all the little things.

Brown 2020-21 (58 gms)   24.7 pts   6.0 rebs   3.4 asst  40% 3pt   76% FT   34 min
Brown 2021-22 (52 gms)   23.0 pts   6.1 rebs   3.4 asst  35% 3pt   76% FT   34 min

If you look at this season as compared to last season, yes, down some.  And if you were to focus in on the last 5 or 10 games, probably down a little bit more.  The whole team was down to start from last season for the most part, probably due to getting used to new coaching.  But if JB is our worst starter, we must be really good.  He is a fringe all star, even this "down" season.

Brown is not in my opinion our weakest starter if you consider the collective season, I don't even think that is the case "recently" but it is more of an argument at least.  It is funny that I tend to value Smart above the norm but I consider Brown more impactful than Smart and certainly more so than RWill or Horford.  Brown does a lot of what Tatum does so some devalue his impact but I don't see it that way.

If you constructed a draft where a team could pick any Celtic other than Tatum, I think all 31 teams would pick Brown, hands down.  It is a bit concerning that Brown plateaued or even took a modest step back this season but I feel like he will still get even better, he will be better for the playoffs and he will be better next season.

[Roy H.]

Reflexively I want to call out folks for looking at a five game sample, with three of those games including a game where he got injured and two during his recovery.

So, I looked at monthly splits to disprove the argument...  and I didn't.  February was pretty lousy for JB:

21.2 / 5.4 / 4.5.  Those aren't terrible numbers, but certainly not reflective of what Brown is capable of.  The worst part, though, was his shooting percentages:  28.3% 3PT%, .679 FT%. 

When I see that type of shooting from JB over a month, I don't worry about his ankle, or his focus.  I worry about his wrist that he injured.  I hope it's nothing, but now I'll be more focused on his shooting.

[pablohoney]

We can point to the ankle injury, yes, but I also think the team’s style of play hasn’t done him any favors. The team is clearly revolving around Tatum (who has risen to the challenge). Not the Tatum-Brown, your-turn-my-turn iso ball which we saw earlier in the year. And I said this before and I’ll say it again here: Tatum and Brown don’t maximize each other. Not to say they can’t play together but Brown is overqualified for what he’s being asked to do.

That said, Brown does get heavily featured early in the game, and he’s the primary scoring option when Tatum is on the bench. He’s still arguably our most important player after Tatum and we will need him to come up big in the playoffs because teams will be routinely throwing double teams at Tatum, which means Brown can operate against a softer defense

It is rare that 2 stars maximize each other statistically.  Pierce, KG and Allen all took hits to their averages across the board but the team success was maximized.  So it is and will be for Tatum and Brown.  Tatum is on a tear right now but Brown can easily be that guy at times too.  Tatum is definitely passing out of double teams better and therefore is appropriately getting more usage independent of his individual scoring skills.  Brown may have to sacrifice some and embrace the closer role offensively which is pretty fun so I can’t imagine he would mind.  Maybe Brown dreams of being the #1 guy the team builds around and the extra cash that comes with it to the point of demanding a trade but I can’t see how he would rather do that than be part of a winner.

[gouki88]

Reflexively I want to call out folks for looking at a five game sample, with three of those games including a game where he got injured and two during his recovery.

So, I looked at monthly splits to disprove the argument...  and I didn't.  February was pretty lousy for JB:

21.2 / 5.4 / 4.5.  Those aren't terrible numbers, but certainly not reflective of what Brown is capable of.  The worst part, though, was his shooting percentages:  28.3% 3PT%, .679 FT%. 

When I see that type of shooting from JB over a month, I don't worry about his ankle, or his focus.  I worry about his wrist that he injured.  I hope it's nothing, but now I'll be more focused on his shooting.

That three point shooting is very rough. Maybe slipped by some of us because Smart, Horford and Tatum are all shooting well now?