Jaylen Brown's recent move to the bench has brought success for the Boston Celtics, but also plenty of change for the third-year guard, who quickly became a starter in his second year in the league. Teammate Kyrie Irving looks at his new role as a new challenge to overcome, as Brown looks to shake off a poor start to the season shooting the ball, hoping to regain his confidence.
“I have such high expectations for a guy like Jaylen, knowing how smart he is off the court, knowing his intellect, how he likes to be challenged,” Irving told ESPN's Jackie MacMullan. “On the court, you just know there's so much more for him. You can see how much better he can get.
“I don't think Jaylen has ever been challenged in this way. When you're challenged sometimes, and you've been only doing it for three years, you can question a lot of things. You question yourself, and your confidence wavers because everything you've been doing up to this point has worked. You're used to doing little things to get you out of a rut, but suddenly that's not happening.”
Kyrie Irving empathized with Celtics his teammate, detailing how he's been at that same spot and had to dig himself out through time and patience.
“You find yourself in a situation where every single day you are demanded to be great. That's a hard journey for anybody in this league, and to have that much talent and not be able to showcase it, I'm sure it is tough on him.
“I definitely understand it. I'm empathetic, and I'm also patient.”
Jaylen Brown has proven to be an asset coming off Brad Stevens' bench, posting 21, 23, and 19 points in his three outings under this different role. A good boost of confidence for the 6-foot-7 slasher.
The 22-year-old is shooting 42.4 percent from the field and a hair under 30 percent from deep, but Irving notes his progress is much more than mere numbers on a stat line.
“It's not about how many shots he's making or percentages or stats or anything like that,” said Irving. “Now it's about, ‘How do you get out of your own way to become the best version of yourself in an environment with other great players?' You're not in an environment where we can wait around for you. You're not surrounded by decent players who you will automatically play over, no matter how you perform. Now you have to work because other guys are putting in their work, trying to accomplish a goal bigger than themselves.
“The beautiful thing about Jaylen is he's smart enough to figure this out. He's in a transitional year.”
Jaylen Brown expressed he's not giving up on his chances to become a starter again, but due to the implications of being in a championship-caliber team, he will have to do what is asked for him in order to meet a team goal.
The Celtics have won six straight games with Marcus Smart in Brown's old spot at shooting guard and could make it seven in a row by beating the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.
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