Jaylen Brown was more than happy to see his Boston Celtics co-star play again for the first time in nearly 10 months.
Jayson Tatum was in the starting lineup next to Brown in the Celtics’ home game on Friday against the Dallas Mavericks at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. The dynamic tandem picked up their first win together since last May, when the Celtics were dueling with the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
During a live stream shortly after the game, Brown spoke candidly about the experience of watching Tatum slowly look more and more like his old self as each minute passed in Boston’s 120-100 victory over Dallas.
“It’s good to see, not only my brother back out there, but more importantly, besides basketball, the mental aspect, for those who’ve had injuries, it definitely has an effect on your mental health,” Brown shared to his Twitch viewers.
“So to see my boy smiling and seeing him out there having fun, doing what he loves to do, I got to see up close and personal when he went down with his injury, watching that and seeing that look in his eyes of uncertainty, for him to be out there smiling, that was a victory in itself.”
Brown made a superstar leap in his first 55 games without Tatum in the lineup. He averaged 28.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 5.0 assists in what many considered to be a dark horse MVP campaign as the Celtics’ unquestioned No. 1 option. Brown once again led Boston with 24 points in Friday’s game.
Some fans and media members have wondered how Tatum’s return would affect Brown in a season wherein the latter has clearly taken hold of the team. Brown himself sounded like he was just happy to play with his friend and longtime running mate again.
