Jaylen Brown Calls Out Celtics for Getting Comfortable in Recent Slump

Valentina Martinez | Dec 30, 2024

Dec 29, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) during the second half against the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images / Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

The Boston Celtics have lost four of their last six games. During this most recent stretch, many of the Celtics' defeats have come from inconsistency on defense as the team's unit has ranked 15th in the league.

The most recent example was in Boston's 123-114 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday. The matchup was statistically the Celticsecond-worstrst defensive outing of the season.

The team was down a few starters in Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis but the Celtics were outplayed all night. The Pacers showed their scoring firepower, and paint domination by their guards, and thus, were able to get easy looks.

Celtics star Jaylen Brown called out the coaching staff and his teammates for a lack of urgency this season.

“We’ve had some great moments this season and maybe some comfort has slipped in,” Brown said. “Offensively, we’re fine. I just think defensively we’ve got to find ways to get more stops and be more consistent protecting the basket, helping each other, communicating. We just didn’t emphasize that enough.”

Brown has always put an emphasis on defense, a characteristic that fans are seeing less and less of in the modern NBA era. When Brown signed his max contract with Boston in 2023, he reiterated the importance of the organization returning to its defensive roots.

Flash forward to 2024, Brown believes the Celtics have failed to be a physical team in this most recent stretch of games.

“We’ve got to get back to emphasizing the defensive side of the ball,” Brown said. “It’s kind of slipped over the last few games, our intensity. Teams are pressuring us and being physical with us. We’ve got to do the same stuff back to them. We did some good stuff in spots, but just not enough.

“Defense is something that you’ve got to have effort. We haven’t had as much intensity and effort that we need. That’s pretty much it.”

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