The Boston Celtics are one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, but the Washington Wizards took them by surprise with an impressive 99-94 win on Monday night. Jaylen Brown did all he could to help the Celtics, but his efforts fell short against a shorthanded Washington team that has been playing with a lot of heart.
The Celtics have done an excellent job taking care of business against bad teams this season, but they weren't able to get the job done in this one. When asked what went wrong against the Wizards, Brown had a pretty simple answer:
"You have to give credit where credit is due. They kicked our ass." – #Celtics Jaylen Brown following loss to the #Wizards.
— A. Sherrod Blakely (@ASherrodblakely) January 7, 2020
Brown led the Celtics with 23 points, 12 rebounds, and a single assist over 33 minutes of play. However, he was atrocious from the field as he only made seven of his 22 field goal attempts and 2-of-10 on 3-pointers.
The entire Celtics team suffered through a rough shooting performance. Boston shot a woeful 34.7% from the field and 8-of-37 from 3-point land against one of the worst defenses in the NBA. Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward, and Marcus Smart combined to shoot 15-of-45, just about matching Jaylen Brown's poor shooting night. The bench also didn't provide much assistance as not a single one among the role players managed to notch double digits in points.
Fortunately, the season is long and the Celtics can forget about the atrocious showing they had. They need to play better as they will face the Philadelphia 76ers up next. Joel Embiid may not be there due to his painful finger injury, but the Sixers will still provide them with a challenge.