The Boston Celtics are rightly recognized as a heavyweight team.<\/p>\n
Aside from going 64-18 in the 2023-24 regular season, they\u2019re on their third straight trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. The last time the Celtics achieved this feat, they had made it to four straight NBA Finals while led by Larry Bird<\/a>. It\u2019s only fitting then that one of the Celtics\u2019 current prizefighters is in the shadow of their face of the franchise. Just like with Kevin McHale<\/a> forty years ago, the fanfare reserved for their franchise player<\/a> eludes Jaylen Brown<\/a>.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t to say Brown isn\u2019t well-liked or respected. A bright-minded and thoughtful individual with a flourish for highlight reel dunks, Brown\u2019s developmental arc should draw comparisons to peers like Paul George<\/a>, Jimmy Butler<\/a> and Kawhi Leonard<\/a>. Players that began their careers as defensive specialists, these stars are now heralded for their go-to scoring ability. Brown, who averaged 6.6 points per game as a rookie and averaged a career-high 26.6 points per game, has developed as much as any player<\/a> in recent memory.<\/p>\n Even that hasn\u2019t been enough.<\/p>\n At first, criticisms centered on Brown focused on his fit alongside Tatum. These conversations were sensible, as the duo passed the baton more than they played off each other. Frankly, they still play that way.<\/p>\n However, Brown\u2019s tunnel vision and right-hand dominance were also put under the microscope.<\/p>\n Because Tatum had shown a knack for playmaking earlier in his career, there was less pressure on Brown to create for his teammates. Nonetheless, any offense is better when player\u2019s are willing to pass up tough shots for better ones. With regard to Brown\u2019s ball-handling, training with players like Hall of Fame wing Tracy McGrady<\/a> in the offseason has gone a long way. Still, his left hand is notoriously weaker than his right, and it became a glaring issue in the 2023 NBA Playoffs.<\/p>\n Though he\u2019s worked hard on improving his ball-control and finishing ability with his off hand, NBA fans can have the memories of elephants.<\/p>\n Brown claims he isn\u2019t bothered by the criticism.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is what it is<\/a>,\u201d he says, per The Athletic\u2019s Jay King. \u201cI\u2019ve accepted that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPersonally, the amount of criticism you get, no matter how well you do, it\u2019s always going to be the criticism that comes first.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cI\u2019ve struggled with that at times\u2026,\u201d the 27-year-old admits, \u201cbut as I get older\u2026 it is what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n It may seem cynical but there\u2019s really nothing he can do to change the reactions to his game. Some players, like Giannis Antetokounmpo<\/a> or Anthony Edwards<\/a>, largely repel negativity. Not only do observers enjoy watching them play, they\u2019re fans of their personalities as well.<\/p>\n Others, like LeBron James<\/a> and Zion Williamson<\/a>, seem to be a magnet for it. Brown has fallen on this side of the spectrum. Like them, Brown isn\u2019t appreciated for what he is, coming under fire for what he isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026.I put my best foot forward,\u201d he muses. \u201cI get better every year\u2026 add to winning\u2026 make my teammates around me better\u2026 [and] empower my teammates around me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI celebrate the city as best I possibly can.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Brown elaborates on his mindset about fan and media scrutiny, saying \u201cwhatever you do is going to be scrutinized\u2026 No matter how good you are, it\u2019s never going to be enough or (bring) any praise\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s tough\u2026,\u201d the three-time All-Star considers. \u201cYou\u2019ve gotta embrace that villain. And as I\u2019m getting older I\u2019m starting to embrace it more.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEmbracing not giving a f*** whether they see (my value) or don\u2019t see it, whether they appreciate it or don\u2019t appreciate it. I\u2019m focused on helping my team, helping my family, helping the city and I go from there.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just a mindset where I don\u2019t care if you boo or celebrate,\u201d the Atlanta native explains. \u201cI don\u2019t allow the emotion of appreciation or the emotion of scrutiny to have any effect whatsoever.\u201d<\/p>\n Ultimately, being unable to go through normal human emotions like joy or frustration is tragic. On the one hand, being able to remain level- headed is important, especially in high pressure situations. However, playing in the NBA is and has been many people\u2019s dream. Though Brown\u2019s undoubtedly happy with his life, more consistent adulation may have made his career that much more enjoyable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Boston Celtics are rightly recognized as a heavyweight team. Aside from going 64-18 in the 2023-24 regular season, they\u2019re on their third straight trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. The last time the Celtics achieved this feat, they had made it to four straight NBA Finals while led by Larry Bird. It\u2019s only fitting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5008,"featured_media":77722,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1608,62,3],"tags":[450,798],"class_list":["post-77687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celtics","category-basketball","category-nba","category-news","tag-jaylen-brown","tag-jayson-tatum"],"modified_by":"Quenton S Albertie","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5008"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77687"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77687\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Jaylen Brown Embracing \u2018Villain\u2019 Role<\/h2>\n
Wisdom Comes With Age<\/h4>\n
The Last Word on Jaylen Brown<\/h3>\n