“So seeing him go down was tough, but we’ve got a lot of guys out here that are highly competitive, and we didn’t want our season to end tonight,” said Jaylen Brown in the aftermath of Game 5 of the Celtics-Knicks playoff series. After they lost 3 out of 4 games, and Jayson Tatum sustained a season-ending injury, the grave was already dug for the Celtics squad. However, just like Undertaker, they rose from the coffin, and made it clear they weren’t going down so soon. In the absence of Tatum, Jaylen Brown and co secured a surprise win at TD Garden, thereby giving them a breather. With the Knicks threat still not neutralized, however, Brown is narrowing his team’s focus for the next game, along with adopting a new role.

During the post-game presser, Jaylen Brown was asked about how he views his role right now. After all, Jayson Tatum’s injury, which he sustained in Game 4, was diagnosed to be a right Achilles’ tendon rupture. This caused him to immediately get surgery, from which he won’t recover for at least the next 9-12 months. This means, in turn, that the Celtics will be without their leader for not only their remaining games in this tournament, but possibly for the majority of the next season too. Without their leader, however, only if Jaylen Brown is unable to fill that gap well. Fortunately, it is a responsibility the 28-year-old is not backing away from.

“It’s a team. We’re…. we’ve always been a team. I’ve always preached team, I’ve done whatever, you know, to kind of push this team forward,” said Brown. “So, whatever is needed of me, you know, I’m excited to be able to, you know, facilitate in whatever role. So it could change each game, each night, defensively, offensively. But the goal is to just lead. Just be myself”.

Though he may not tell, Jaylen Brown would have been glad to get the leadership role. After all, despite having been with the Celtics a year more than Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown has only been the second in command. The Scottie Pippen to Michael Jordan, or the Kyrie Irving to LeBron James, so to speak. Brown even admitted, during a February interview with Sports Illustrated, about his tough journey within the Celtics squad by stating “To be honest, things have not gone my way. I haven’t been catered to, in the sense, which has made me stronger”.

Going into this tournament, the player admitted to adopting a new role. Earlier, he was described to be the team’s tone-setter, aka someone who led the line during the 1st quarter of games, and got the roster off to a major start. In the early part of the season, that job fell on Jayson Tatum, while Brown was tasked with reportedly leading the second unit. That role comes with new challenges, with one of them being a change in spacing due to the double-big lineup Joe Mazzulla likes to use off the bench. Even by January, Brown admitted that the new responsibility presented some challenges, but not something he was willing to run away from.

“I’ve had to adjust, it’s a different year,” said Brown. “I just do what the team needs me to do. I’ve been able to evolve through different things in my career. This team, I’m more of a playmaker, so I just embrace it and get better in that role and do what I do.”

Now, Jaylen Brown does not have to adjust. With Jayson Tatum gone, he is the team’s lead scorer and the one who leads the starting unit. The 2024 Finals MVP already proved his worth by winning Game 5 against the New York Knicks. Now, for Game 6, it is he who is setting the tone.

Jaylen Brown tells Celtics Locker Room to focus on defense for Game 6: “guard your yard”

If NBA 2K taught us anything, it is that making those layups isn’t enough. One has to press that LB button and defend, too. Especially when facing a team like the New York Knicks, where Karl-Anthony Towns has been making getting those rebounds time after time.

Therefore, during the post-game presser, when asked if Jaylen Brown had a message going into Game 6, he replied, “Defense. That’s…. that’s all I’m talking about, is defense, and just, nothing easy, you know. You know, guard your yard, you know, find a way to get stops, dig deep, you know, mono-e-mano, you know, win your matchups, play defense, um, and that’s pretty much been the emphasis”.

As highlighted by NBA reporter John Schuhmann, Jaylen Brown’s focus was not on making up for Tatum’s scoring by himself. It was on defense, where he was guarding Jalen Brunson from the opening tip, instead of Jrue Holiday or Derrick White. This reportedly limited Brunson’s offense to a great extent, and he scored just 22 points (7-17 Field Goals) after scoring 39 points in Game 4. Therefore, if Brown is taking up new roles on the defense, what is stopping the others from doing so?

It remains to be seen just how efficient Brown will be on the defensive front in Game 6.