Jaylen Brown has had an up-and-down start to the 2021-22 season, and Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka indicated this week that he is frustrated with the star swingman. He may feel differently after Brown attributed his inconsistent play to his health.
Brown scored 13 points in 37 minutes in Boston’s 116-107 loss to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night. He went just 5-of-16 shooting. After the game, Udoka called it “mind boggling” that Brown plays so well some nights and seems disinterested other times. Brown was asked on Friday about his coach’s comments. He said he feels as though he still has not fully recovered after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month.
Jaylen Brown on Ime Udoka saying his inconsistent play is "mind-boggling": "I didn't see the comments, but Ime talked to me about it. It's mind-boggling to me too. I don't think he's out of line or anything for saying that."
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 29, 2021
Jaylen Brown says he thinks he is feeling aftereffects of having COVID. Brown said his recovery hasn't been the same: "It feels like I played three games instead of one game."
Brown said he has some lingering joint pain and fatigue as well.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 29, 2021
Brown has played in four of the Celtics’ five games this season. His scoring outputs are as follows: 46, 9, 30, 13. While the sample size is small, he has certainly been inconsistent.
If Brown truly isn’t feeling 100 percent, the Celtics will probably start giving him some off days.
It’s worth noting that the Celtics may have hired Udoka in part because of Brown. Some might be surprised to see the new head coach challenge one of his best players this early in the season, but Brown didn’t seem offended.
