Hall of Fame forward Kevin Garnett was one of the judges for the 2025 Dunk Contest and honored the late Bill Russell, which didn’t go unnoticed by Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown. Brown earned the 2024 Finals MVP trophy, which is named in honor of Russell. After the event, Jaylen acknowledged Garnett’s hoodie, which replicated Russell’s University of San Francisco jersey.

Brown gave Garnett a shoutout on his X, formerly Twitter.

“Love this,” Brown said with a number six and heart emoji.

Kevin Garnett pays homage to Russell in the same city as Bill’s alma mater, which was a fitting tribute in San Francisco and added a nice touch to All-Star Saturday Night at the Chase Center. Before capturing his first and only NBA title, Garnett had a special televised conversation with Russell. Then, he helped guide the Celtics to their 17th championship in 2008.

Russell’s storied history with the Celtics will be featured in an upcoming documentary series on HBO Max, “Celtics City.” Garnett, among other former Celtics players, was interviewed in the series, which debuts on March 3.

Jaylen Brown’s approach to improving amid 2024-25 Celtics

Celtics forward Jaylen Brown (7) of the Boston Celtics talks to media members during the NBA All Star-Practice at Oakland Arena
Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
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Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown earned his fourth All-Star appearance. After he helped lead the Celtics to their first title in 16 years in 2024, Brown revealed a new mindset to improve his game throughout the 2024-25 campaign. At 28, Jaylen seeks new ways to sharpen his approach as Boston attempts to repeat as NBA champions.

Brown vows to improve his free-throw shooting percentage until he dies, per ClutchPoints’ Daniel Donabedian.

“I’m just trying to improve in all facets of my game, just all my weaknesses,” he stated. “Keep getting better and better. My playmaking, my defense. I don’t know. Maybe there are some other players who don’t really improve, but that’s not me. I’m gonna keep getting better until I die.”

Brown enters this year’s All-Star Game, averaging 22.9 points on 46.1% shooting, 6.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He’s also shooting at a 74.6% clip from the free-throw line, which is the most efficient he’s been in two years from the charity stripe. Brown’s shot at a 70% clip or better since 2019-20. However, the lowest percentage dropped in 2023-24 (70.3%).

However, this year, Brown’s career-best 5.3 free-throw attempts per game is a career-best. The Celtics have the second-best record (39-16) in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Cleveland Cavs (44-10) by 5.5 games. The Celtics also entered the All-Star break 8-2 in their last 10, leading the third-placed New York Knicks by 2.5 games.