Jaylen Brown Delves Into 2 Crucial Factors Behind Celtics’ ‘Unacceptable’ Game 2 Defeat; Downplays Worrying TD Garden Record

After the Celtics blew the Cavaliers out on Tuesday by twenty-five points, many brought their brooms out expecting an easy sweep. However, in a surprising turn of events, Donovan Mitchell and Co. shattered the Celtics fans’ hopes by handing them a 118-94 loss in tonight’s Game 2, that too at Boston’s own TD Garden. With tonight’s humiliating loss, the Celtics postseason record at home since the 2021 playoffs worsened to 15-15. And while it might be a concerning number for the Celtics fans, Jaylen Brown was not too worried and suggested ‘chinning up’.

Visibly disappointed after the blowout loss, Brown listed two key points for the Celtics’ underwhelming performance against the Cavs tonight. “That’s the key. I think defensively, that’s the key. And rebounding… Those are two things that we didn’t do tonight… We didn’t rebound, and we also didn’t defend at a high enough level.”

Grabbing forty-four boards in tonight’s game compared to Boston’s thirty-one, Donovan Mitchell’s squad won the rebounding battle, which proved crucial in their victory. Moreover, the Celtics were missing Kristaps Porzingis, who averaged over seven rebounds during the regular season but is likely out for the entire series due to a calf injury. In his absence, the Celtics struggled to stop Evan Mobley inside the paint, leading to a big void in their defense all night.

Jaylen knows the Celtics need to play better and bounce back. He said, “You take it on the chin and you put your best foot forward next game. This was an unacceptable performance and you have to respond.”

Amid Jaylen Brown’s positivity, would tonight’s home loss haunt the Celtics later?

When a reporter asked Jaylen Brown about his team’s disappointing playoff record at home, the superstar didn’t want to dwell in the past. “I’m only concerned with this year. Last year is last year!”, he said.

However, even this year, the Celtics lost a playoff game at the TD Garden, that too against a Jimmy Butler-less Miami Heat. Despite being the best team in the league all season, the Celtics were left stunned by the incredible shooting performance of Tyler Herro and Co. that night. And had Butler been healthy, Boston might have had to go through another grueling series like last year.

So, rather than completely ignoring the Celtics’ record at home, Brown should maybe find out the reason for the same thing happening time and again. While most teams perform their best at home, the Celtics somehow seem to lose their focus and play even worse. Maybe a lot of it has to do with their reliance on the three-point shot.

Even criticized in the past for this, Joe Mazzulla has a tendency to rely heavily on the outside game. But as the saying goes, ‘You live by the three and you die by the three’, the strategy can go either way.

Even Brown said after tonight’s game that they shot the ball awfully. Making only 22.9% of their shots from distance, compared to Cleveland’s 46.4%, the C’s shooting hurt them. And with the next two games being played in Cleveland, tonight’s loss could come back to haunt the Celtics very soon.

Where do you think the Celtics need to improve to win this series?