INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Jaylen Brown found his rhythm on the dance floor Friday night and brought it to the hardwood Saturday. The Celtics star matched a career-high with 50 points on a scorching 18-of-26 shooting, powering Boston to a 146-115 rout that snapped the LA Clippers’ six-game winning streak.
The win caps a five-game road trip for Boston (22-12), pulling them within half a game of the New York Knicks for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Salsa and Smooth Shooting
Brown knew he was locked in long before tip-off. His efficiency was lethal, but he credited his footwork to an unusual source of preparation.
“I knew before the game,” Brown said. “In warmups, I could just feel like every shot, the ball was coming off my hand super clean. My footwork felt great. I did salsa last night. Had some great salsa classes. So I felt good as soon as I walked into the arena.”
That fluid movement translated to both ends of the floor. Brown demanded the assignment on Kawhi Leonard, who had been tearing through the league averaging 39 points on nearly 70 percent shooting during LA’s streak.
Brown stifled him. Leonard finished with a quiet 22 points on 6-for-17 shooting.
“I seek those challenges,” Brown said. “I feel like it brings the most out of me. Obviously, Kawhi is one of the greats, so I wanted to start on him… I like when my back is against the wall.”
Fueled by the Snub
There was more to Brown’s fire than just a marquee matchup. He made no secret of his frustration after being passed over for the Eastern Conference Player of the Month award in December, an honor that went to New York’s Jalen Brunson.
Despite Brown leading Brunson in nearly every statistical category and the Celtics winning the head-to-head matchup, the award went to New York. Brown’s reaction was a simple, public “smh” on X (formerly Twitter), followed by candid comments on his live stream.
Saturday night served as his rebuttal.
“I believe I’m the best two-way player in the world,” Brown said. “So I just wanted to come out and show it. When people doubt, it fuels me. So even though it’d be nice to get some respect… keep it up. I definitely use it as fuel.”
