Cal Basketball: Jaylen Brown on Removing His Mask - `It Gave Me The Edge I Needed'
The mask came off and it was as if the gloves came off for Jaylen Brown. He proceeded to help Boston deliver a knockout of the Atlanta Hawks in a 129-121 victory that gives the Celtics a 3-1 lead in the opening-round NBA Eastern Conference series.
Equipped with a protective mask each time he has taken the court since suffering a facial fracture on Feb. 8, Brown had enough after shooting 1 for 7 to open Sunday’s game in Atlanta.
During a timeout 9:02 left in the second quarter, the one-time Cal standout pulled off the mask and everything changed.
Jaylen Brown pulls down a rebound vs. Atlanta
Photo by Dale Zanine, USA Today
“Maybe it was all my head," Brown said. "I just needed a different look. As soon as I took it off, things started to turn around a little bit. It just gave me the edge I needed.”
Brown shot 11 for 15 from the field the rest of the way and made all three of his 3-point attempts, scoring 29 maskless points. He had just two points before changing his look, and shot 28 percent from the 3-point arc in the first three games of the series.
The Celtics, who return to Boston with the chance to secure the series in Game 5 on Tuesday, had no warning Brown was going to pull off his mask.
"After the timeout, we’re looking for Jaylen and couldn't find him because he didn't have his mask on," guard Marcus Smart said. "I was like, 'Where's he at?’
"And then we see him in the corner, and he gets the ball, and then obviously he makes those plays where he's driving with force, and he throws it off the glass a couple (of) times, and makes some great plays, and we just knew at that moment, it was a different JB and he was gonna carry us and bring us home.”
Brown and fellow Celtics all-star Jayson Tatum each scored 31 points, but it was Brown who earned attention for his in-game equipment adjustment. He also removed the wrap on his right hand he’d worn since cutting himself on a broken vase at home on April 7 and getting five stitches.
"I saw just his poise. I thought he did a great job making plays at the rim, operating in space, playing off two feet, making the right play,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “To me he showed just tremendous poise, especially on the offensive end. He had the ball in his hands making plays for himself and others.”
Brown said the difference Sunday was his approach, not his scoring totals.
"It didn't matter if I scored 25 or I scored two, as long as I just helped my team to be in a position to win, that's what I'm trying to focus on,” he said. “But I definitely need to continue to be more aggressive 'cause I feel like our team is different when I've got the ball and I'm being aggressive.”
Brown called it “bittersweet” to win in Atlanta, where he grew up before playing one season at Cal.
“My first game was a Hawks game. I was sitting in the nosebleeds,” he said. “My aunt, who was in attendance tonight, bought me tickets to my first game for my seventh birthday.”
Cover photo of Jaylen Brown by Dale Zanine, USA Today
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo
