For the first time in his NBA career, Boston Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum wore street clothes during a playoff game. Fellow Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown’s 36 points led his team to a 109-100 win against the Orlando Magic. Boston grabbed a 2-0 lead in their opening-round series. Tatum was ruled out with a wrist injury, and Brown torched the Magic, connecting on 12-of-19 attempts, including 5-of-7 from deep, and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line.

After the win, Brown discussed his duty to step up in Tatum’s absence, per ClutchPoints’ Daniel Donabedian.

“Obviously, JT is the offensive leader of our team,” Brown said. “But any given night, I can rise to the occasion. I just do what the team needs me to do. I’ve taken that mentality, and I think sometimes people think that’s like the only thing you can do. Tonight I got lucky, I guess.”

Brown also finished with 10 rebounds, five assists, and one block in the nine-point victory. His scoring led five Celtics players in double figures, including Kristaps Porzingis (20 points), Derrick White (17 points), Jrue Holiday (11 points), and this year’s Sixth Man of the Year, Payton Pritchard (14 points).

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Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) shoots before their game 2 against the Orlando Magic in the first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs at TD Garden
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After Wednesday’s win, Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown kept it 100 about the Magic as the best-of-7 series shifts to Orlando for Games 3 and 4. While his team cruised to a pair of wins at TD Garden, with and without Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum, he’s expecting better performances from the Magic.

Brown addressed the Magic and the series’ shift in his walk-off interview with TNT’s Stephanie Ready.

“They’re a good young team, so we just got to take care of the ball a little bit better,” Brown said. “We know they’re gonna keep it going, they’re not going to give up, so we got to keep playing basketball and let the outcome be determined by us.”

Shooting at a 47.6% clip from the floor, the Magic were efficient offensively against the Celtics, but couldn’t get over the hump in the final frame. After the Celtics outscored the Magic 31-24 in the third quarter, they kept their opponent at bay throughout the rest of the second half. All-Star Paolo Banchero scored a team-high 32 points. He also finished with nine rebounds, seven assists, and two blocks.

Magic’s Franz Wagner added 25 points, Wendell Carter Jr. added 17 points, and Anthony Black’s 11 points led their bench. The opening-round series continues when the Magic host the Celtics at the Kia Center on Friday.