Celtics news: Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown's motivation vs. Knicks

A motivated Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Boston Celtics team held on to defeat the New York Knicks, 101-99, on Wednesday night.

Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics held on to defeat the New York Knicks, 101-99, on Wednesday night. The triumph brings the team’s record to .500, marking their 26th win of the season. It also has some playoff seeding implications, as the ‘Bockers have been put one game back from Boston and the seventh spot in the East.

The win came off of the back of a difficult loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. According Brown, he had some strong words of motivation for Tatum after the loss, which probably fueled the two of them coming in against the Knicks.

“Let's just come out and play basketball and be aggressive and be the best version of ourselves,” Brown said on what he told his Celtics teammate, per Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports.

Sure enough, the Celtics looked motivated throughout their latest game, as both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum notched huge double doubles: Brown with 32 points and 10 rebounds, and Tatum with 25 points and 10 boards. The pair have been hot on the offensive end all year despite their squad’s difficulties, averaging 24.1 and 25.1 points per game, respectively.

The best versions of the two young stars will be critical to Boston’s success, as it has severely underperformed this season. Last year, the Celtics earned the third seed in the East with a 48-24 record on virtually the same roster.

The blame for the Celtics' lulls has been directed at a variety of sources. Many fans say that the team’s effort is lacking, while others point to alleged poor coaching from tenured head coach Brad Stevens. Whatever the case may be, the team is fully capable of achieving the heights of last season’s success. But if they are to reach the same level that the fans are accustomed to, the squad needs to continue to play motivated.