No one, literally no one, expected the Celtics to crash out in the second round the way they did. A 38-point blowout loss against the Knicks truly brought a tragic end to their 61-win season. For Jaylen Brown, the feeling was not a good one: “Losing to the Knicks feels like death.” But even though the early playoff exit hurts, he does not think it’s the end of the world for the Boston franchise.

“I was always taught there is life after death. So, we’ll get ready for whatever is next. Whatever is next in the journey, I’ll be ready for it,” Brown said after his final game of the season. Of course, it will take some time to process what happened, but JB is proud of his team for staying together amid adversity. “I’m proud of our group. I thought that we fought… I’m happy that our group stayed together. It was an honor to share the locker room with a lot of these guys.”

Continuing the emotional message, Jaylen said, “It hurt to see the emotions of all the guys, being the leader and not being able to carry everybody to the promise land. It sucks, but it just wasn’t our year.” Well, a lot of things did not go the Celtics’ way in the Knicks series. Obviously, the biggest blow was Jayson Tatum suffering a season-ending Achilles injury in Game 4, which left his team shorthanded for the next two encounters. Kristaps Porzingis was also not 100%, dealing with an illness that has been bothering him since the regular season. Even Brown was playing through a lingering knee injury. So, even though the Celtics were the higher seed, the odds were stacked against them.

“Finishing in May feels weird. Definitely not something we were prepared for. Obviously, Jayson, his injury etc. I’m sure there is a lot to process just as everything, this whole year. But we’ll meet, we’ll take a couple days. It’s hard, like processing it all right now in real time.” Brown added. But he aims to come back stronger next season.

Jaylen Brown optimistic about Celtics’ future despite Boston’s “gloomy” atmosphere

While the wound of elimination is still fresh, Brown is happy with what he was able to accomplish overall this season, “I don’t make no excuses. Obviously, it’s tough the way we went out like tonight, but the way we finished the year personally, where I finished the year, you know, persevering through some physical stuff that I was battling through.” Yes, JB played the latter half of the season with a lingering knee injury, an issue he had never faced in his career.

Despite the setback, he fought through the pain and did everything he could to help his team, averaging 22.1 points and over seven rebounds during this brief playoff run. And the reigning Finals MVP is proud of his perseverance. Moreover, he is excited for the Celtics’ future and is hoping to turn this loss into motivation, “We was in a lot of battles and it’s a lot to be excited for. This journey is not the end. It’s not the end for me. I’m looking forward to coming back stronger. So, you just take this with your chin up. I know Boston, it looks gloomy right now, obviously with JT being out and us kind of ending the year. But it’s a lot to look forward to, and I want this city to feel excited about that. Like this is not the end.”

With Tatum likely out for the majority of next season due to the ruptured Achilles, Brown will be the sole leader of the team next year. It’s up to him to instill his teammates with the right motivation and energy to come out stronger and accomplish what they failed to do this season. Do you think he can do it?