Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big storyline. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
Brown had been Boston’s best player through the first four games of the season, and he gave his best performance versus Memphis.
The 24-year-old guard set a career high with 42 points in just 29 minutes on 15-of-21 shooting, including a 7-of-10 mark from 3-point range. Brown scored 26 of his points in the first half as Boston’s advantage widened to more than 30 points. Brown didn’t play in the fourth quarter as Boston emptied the bench with a huge lead.
Scoring 40+ points in under 30 minutes is a feat no other Celtic has accomplished since Larry Legend in 1986, which is impressive enough. But where JB has really made strides is in his decision making and ball handling. In the small sample size, we’ve seen this season, Jaylen looks significantly more refined than his already much-improved season last year.
Brown is seeing the floor and passing with anticipation now. The spin he put on [a third quarter] pass to rifle it through the defenders and into Tatum’s hands, in stride, is the kind of thing that didn’t seem to be in the cards for him a few years ago. With the way he is controlling his dribble and creating with both hands in traffic, the potential for Brown to be another pick-and-roll playmaker is emerging. Having him be an offensive hub rather than an elite complementary scorer opens up a lot more avenues for the Celtics to build around their core as they head into their prime.
In just a few years, Jaylen has gone from raw athletic specimen to prolific basketball star. This kind of development has allowed Brad and the rest of the Celtics to trust JB and Jayson with the keys to the kingdom, and in doing so make everyone around them better.
On Page 2… Our first female NBA head coach
Popovich was ejected by official Tony Brown with 3:56 remaining in the second quarter. Popovich screamed at Brown and entered the court following a non-call on DeMar DeRozan’s attempted layup and a subsequent attempted rebound by Drew Eubanks.
As he exited the court to applause from several of the team’s family members in attendance, Popovich pointed a finger at Hammon and had a succinct message.
“You got ‘em,” Hammon said. “See? He doesn’t treat us any differently than he does you guys.”
Hats off to Hammond, who is paving the way already for female coaches as the first full-time assistant coach in NBA history. This is certainly a big step in the evolution of our game, and very fitting that such a great basketball mind has the honor of taking on head coach duties, albeit for a short time.
THE REST OF THE LINKS:
Globe: Jaylen Brown’s career night points to continued development of his overall game
BSJ: Jaylen Brown is making the most of his expanding role with Celtics
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