BOSTON – Derrick Jones Jr. was ready to take off on Thursday evening and put all of TD Garden into airplane mode. He planted the right toe of his orange highlighter sneaker on the attacking circle and then caught Luka Dončić’s lob with both hands. These were the dimes Dončić threw over the Western Conference playoffs that Dallas conquered to reach these NBA Finals. Here was another poster as part of another Herculean Mavericks comeback. Until Jaylen Brown said otherwise.
The Celtics’ All-Star forward lurked along the baseline, darkening his cover toward Maxi Kleber, who was parked in the left corner. “I was the low man. I was with some of those greats. You don’t want to give up the lobs,” Brown said. “That’s something we’ve emphasized.” Dončić has enjoyed finding Jones, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II and whoever else has jumped to the rim this postseason. Brown and Kristaps Porziņģis, in a mighty return from his calf injury, plus Al Horford and Derrick White, with his routine rim protection for just a 6-foot guard, to protect the basket from every Mavericks aerial attack during Boston’s 107-89 Game 1 win. The lob to Jones that Brown denied was Dallas’ only attempt of the night, and the Celtics turned away as many shots (nine) as Dallas’ assists.
Not only did Brown deny Dallas’ high-flying wing, but he also recovered and blocked Jones a second time with 2:28 remaining in the third quarter. “I was able to play cat and mouse a little bit,” Brown said afterward.
A minute later, as Kyrie Irving walked around Jrue Holiday, Brown refused to give the Mavericks’ silky scorer a clean shot at a shootout in front of his former home crowd. The fans booed every dance of Irving’s dribble, and he missed all five of his triples, finishing just 6 of 19 from the floor, one miss thanks to Brown’s acrobatic swat after leaving his assignment – another Mavericks big man in Gafford . “He can just do everything on the basketball court and he has no weaknesses on either side,” White said.
Indeed, Brown also led the way in Boston’s scoring, his 22 points including a poster dunk and hard drives through the paint, along with two three-pointers. Brown also added three steals, one where he picked Dončić’s pocket in the backcourt, the two young phenoms alone on an island in front of a sea of green and white, and Brown stole a runway for another two-handed jam. “JB is unreal at the rim,” White said. Brown’s three blocks in the third quarter were crucial in helping Boston regain a 20-point lead after the Mavericks cut the 29-point gap by just eight points with 4:28 to play in the stanza.
“What you saw tonight is kind of the challenge he set for himself going into this year,” Mazzulla said.
Brown wants the toughest match against the other team, and there he opened the match on Dončić. Brown has said that about all the shaming he’s endured — from cracks over his grip following Boston’s 2022 NBA Finals loss to Golden State, to Stephen A. Smith’s recent controversial claims about Brown going viral went – it was his absence from all the All-Defensive teams that stung him the most. It was a preseason goal from him, now 27 years old and playing in his seventh finals game on Thursday, the 120th postseason game of his eight-season career.
“I thought I upped the ante this year,” Brown said after Boston’s win over Indiana in the conference finals. Another critical block, Celtics fans will fondly remember, from Brown in the fourth quarter of Game 4 helped Boston seal a victory over the Pacers. “I took the matchup, I picked the guys up full court. I’ve chased guys off fencing, I’ve fought the greats,” Brown said. He also said proudly, with the Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals MVP trophy next to him, “I think I’m one of the best two-way wings, guards, whatever you want to say, in this game.”
And he has only proven that statement to be an absolute reality.
A block, where the game is on the line, just carries more weight, doesn’t it? Maybe it’s in the exact definition of the series: a man who rises to the occasion and provides the stopping power to a powerful object. And when the ball bounces back onto the hardwood, he can start a breakaway on the other side. With these Celtics, that could be a grueling three-pointer. They drilled 16 in Game 1 and fired 15 more attempts from beyond the arc than Dallas. Even as Boston’s offense sputtered to open the second half — Dončić quickly scored 10 and the Mavericks clawed their way back to 72-64 — the Celtics responded as they did during three of their four games against the Pacers.
“Usually when you give up a point and your offense stagnates a bit, your defense goes along with it. And tonight our defense kept us in it,” Mazzulla said. “And that’s very important to have that defensive mentality. And some of those plays that Jaylen made were really important.
A 14-2 run, with Brown’s two-way brilliance, closed the third quarter and stifled any momentum for the Mavericks. Brown put his block on Irving and found Al Horford for one of his two three-pointers on the night, then Brown banked in a long ball of his own. “When they cut it down to eight, the game started,” he said. “I liked how our team responded. We stayed calm.” Both Brown and White said the Celtics took a collective breath when they called a timeout at 4:28 of the third and cut their lead to single digits. And yet not a single Boston player or coach left the arena feeling like they had exhaled. Brown walked back to the locker room after the win and handed out high-fives while shouting, “Don’t be cute, guys. It’s just one win.”
He wore a matching black leather set as he took the stage after the match. He was far from festive, almost muffled, and his voice was certainly dull and dissatisfied. It was just two years ago that his Celtics were answering questions in this building after taking a 2-1 lead over the Warriors.
The Boston staff understands that three long, grueling wins still stand in the way of the 18th banner this franchise has coveted since 2008. “Luka still had 30 and 10, so I had to do better,” Brown said. Remember, the Mavericks dropped Game 1 to the Clippers and Thunder in their first two playoff matchups, winning both without the need for a seventh game. Dallas will still have to make moves after watching the tape through Friday and Saturday before Sunday’s Game 2.
“It’s a long series,” Brown said. “I expect them to come out with tremendous force and maybe try to punch us in the mouth.”
