Tag: Jaylen Brown

Brad Stevens OK with no timeout at end of Boston’s OT loss to Houston

Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens is OK with not having called a timeout in the final play of the overtime loss to the Houston Rockets Saturday.

Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens is okay with not having called a timeout in the final play of Saturday night’s loss to the Houston Rockets.

After a miracle 3-pointer by shooting guard Jaylen Brown immediately after a perfectly-executed fake free throw by All-Star forward Jayson Tatum sent the game to overtime, the team looked poised to wrest the game back from the Rockets after going cold in the final frame of regulation.

But Boston would find themselves trailing by one on the extra period’s final possession, and Brown’s progress impeded by small-ball center Robert Covington as he tried to advance the ball.

“We felt like calling an action we were comfortable with and looking at multiple options, which they blew up a couple of the options with their defense,” said Stevens (via MassLive’s John Karalis).

Houston did an outstanding job of forcing the Celtics out of their preferred methods of attack, instead seeing Boston try to adapt on the fly in ways which bent the game towards the Rockets’ strengths, and this sequence was no exception.

“Jaylen going to his right hand for a pull-up jump shot, it’s hard to get a good look in those moments,” explained the Celtics coach.

“And he got a clean look at the rim and we believe in him and trust him,” he added.

““It felt good,” noted Brown. “That’s a shot I’ve been shooting all season, I’ve been working on, it just didn’t fall.”

Had it done so, this would have been the game of the season for how Boston handled the adversity thrown at them by one of the best coaches and two of the best players in the league.

It didn’t, but it shouldn’t diminish the growth we are seeing from Brown and Tatum in particular, but also the team’s ability to dig deep even in the absence of All-Star point guard Kemba Walker, whose usual steadying presence might have been the difference in such a close game.

For their part, the Rockets look the part of a legitimate contender as they concretize their new style of ultra-small play.

They also seem to respect Boston’s young core very much — through their playoff-like play as much as the exchanges which took place after the game.

Jayson Tatum shared a hug with Houston’s PJ Tucker immediately afterward, and was gifted a signed Ben McLemore jersey as well from his fellow St. Louis native, and both James Harden and Russell Westbrook spoke with respect for the opponent they just squeaked by in overtime.

Given the core of Boston’s engine is just getting started with Brown a mere 23-years-old and Tatum 21, that’s probably not the worst strategy — this team is just getting started in terms of their best years.

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The Celtics’ overtime loss left NBA fans questioning Brad Stevens’ decision-making

Why didn’t he call a timeout?

After the Boston Celtics masterfully handled the final moments of regulation in their matchup against the Houston Rockets on Saturday, Brad Stevens seemed likely to pull off more magic in overtime.

The play that sent the Celtics and Rockets into overtime was truly spectacular, with Jayson Tatum intentionally missing a free throw and Marcus Smart tipping the rebound to Jaylen Brown, who nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game as time expired. How could the Celtics lose after that?

The final possession of overtime started with a Celtics’ in-bound and Boston trailing, 111-110. The Rockets had the Celtics well-covered, but Brown shook free enough for a quick catch-and-shoot, which he missed. Daniel Theis caught the rebound, but he was unable to put up another shot in time. And the Celtics’ spoiled their own comeback story with a loss.

Because Boston had a timeout on that final possession, fans and media members wondered why they ran what felt like a rushed possession. Why didn’t coach Brad Stevens use that timeout?

Stevens actually addressed the skepticism in his postgame interview. He explained that he didn’t consider a timeout on the in-bound, but for a split second, thought about a timeout when Theis caught the rebound.

“With all their unpredictability on the side and how physical they are, sometimes it’s hard to get it in. So we felt like calling an action we were comfortable with and looking at a couple of options, which they blew up a couple of the options with their defense,” Stevens said, via NBC Sports Boston.

“But you know, like Jaylen (Brown) going to his right hand for a pull-up jump shot, it’s hard to get a good look in those moments. And he got a clean look at the rim and we believe in him and trust him. I guess the one time I would have considered calling a time out is if I thought Theis had control of the ball, you know, after the fact. But, you know, I was good with the way we ended that. That was fine.”

But the “fine” result wasn’t good enough for a win.

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Westbrook scores 41 as Rockets extend streak to six in Boston

Russell Westbrook scored 41 points and Robert Covington added a career-high 16 rebounds as Houston extended its winning streak in Boston.

Russell Westbrook scored a game-high 41 points, and Robert Covington grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds as the Houston Rockets extended their winning streak to six games with a thrilling 111-110 overtime victory (box score) on Saturday night in Boston.

James Harden struggled from the field with 21 points on 7-of-24 shooting (29.2%), and he had a crucial turnover late in regulation.

But the 2020 All-Star and former MVP came up clutch late in overtime with a steal and two free throws in the final 30 seconds, which were ultimately the difference in an intense and frantic finish.

The Rockets (39-20) have now won nine of their last 11 games, while the Celtics (41-18) lost for just the third time in their last 14 outings. In potential NBA Finals previews, two of those losses were to Houston.

Westbrook’s 41 points came on a 16-of-27 night (59.3%) from the field, extending his career-long streak of consecutive games with over 52% shooting accuracy to seven. He’s scored over 30 points in six of them.

Prior to these last seven games, the longest such streak by the former MVP over his first 12 NBA seasons was three games.

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Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 32 points and 13 rebounds, though the defense of Covington and P.J. Tucker helped limit him to an inefficient 9-of-27 night (33.3%) from the field.

Covington and Tucker combined for six blocked shots and 29 rebounds on Houston’s front line, with six of Tucker’s 13 boards coming on offense.

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Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown added 26 and 22 points, respectively, and each had a 3-pointer for the Celtics in the final 15 seconds of regulation to force an improbable overtime. Houston had led by six with less than 40 seconds left in the fourth quarter before Boston’s rally.

In a sign of the significance of Saturday’s nationally televised showdown of contenders, Houston’s All-Star backcourt of Westbrook and Harden immediately embraced each other once the game went final.

The Rockets will look to run their winning streak to seven games when they visit the New York Knicks (18-42) on Monday night. Tip-off from Madison Square Garden is set for 6:00 p.m. Central.

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WATCH: Jaylen Brown sends the game to OT after missed Tatum FT

Boston Celtics wings Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum worked together to nearly steal Saturday’s game against the Houston Rockets with must-see last-second heroics.

Boston Celtics shooting guard Jaylen Brown very nearly pulled off the upset of the season sending the game into overtime after teammate Jayson Tatum intentionally missed his first free throw in the waning seconds of regulation against the Houston Rockets.

Though Boston would go on to be edged by Houston as Harden hit clutch free throws at the end of the extra period, the brilliance displayed by the Jay Team to nearly steal the win is worth another watch if you’ve seen it, and plenty more if you didn’t.

Bouncing the ball back at his teammates after Rockets “big man” P.J. Tucker fouled the Duke product in an effort to prevent the Celtics from tying the game on that possession backfired spectacularly as the duo snatched defeat from the jaws of victory for five more minutes.

Watch the video above as Brown manages to sink an awkward, last-second trey to force the overtime, and try to think more about what the pair will do in the postseason more than the one that got away.

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Boston Celtics at Utah Jazz odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Wednesday’s Boston Celtics at Utah Jazz sports betting odds, with NBA matchup analysis and picks.

The Boston Celtics (40-17) conclude their four-game road trip Wednesday against the Utah Jazz (36-21) at Vivint Smart Home Arena at 10:30 p.m. ET. We analyze the Celtics-Jazz odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Celtics at Jazz: Key injuries

Celtics

  • PG Kemba Walker (knee) doubtful
  • C Robert Williams III (hip) out

Jazz

  • C Ed Davis (ankle) out

Celtics at Jazz: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 1:20 p.m. ET.

Prediction

Winning team score, Losing team score

Moneyline (ML)

After winning four straight games heading into the All-Star break, the Jazz have lost three in a row coming out of it. The Celtics are in the second game of a back-to-back after beating the Portland Trail Blazers 118-106 Tuesday.

Boston has been playing much better basketball than Utah recently. The Celtics have won 13 of their past 16 games with the only three losses coming on the road against the surging New Orleans Pelicans (123-108, Jan. 26), the Houston Rockets (116-105, Feb. 11) and the Los Angeles Lakers (114-112) this past Sunday. The Jazz are 4-8 over their last 12 games, which includes bad home losses to the Phoenix Suns (131-111, Monday) and the San Antonio Spurs (113-104, Feb. 21).

The CELTICS (+155) are worthy of a moneyline wager.

Line/Against the Spread (ATS)

TAKE CELTICS +4.5 (-110). Boston has been an awesome 17-10-1 against the spread in road games this year and the Jazz are just 1-4 ATS in their last five games at home. The Celtics are 9-6 ATS against winning teams on the road while Utah is 4-5-1 ATS at home against winning teams. Furthermore, the Jazz are just 12-14-1 ATS with a minus-3.1 point margin as a home favorite and the Celtics have a fourth-best 9-4 ATS record with a plus-4.1 average ATS margin as a road dog. 

Over/Under (O/U)

I lean toward the Under (+100) but ultimately will PASS on the 218.5 total. Both teams are very good defensively; Boston is fourth in defensive rating and opponent points per game while Utah is ninth in opponent points per game and opponent field-goal percentage. I am passing though because the Over is 7-2 in the last nine meetings in Utah and the Over is -121, meaning the market feels like there will be a lot of points scored in this one.

Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @Geoffery_Clark and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

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Jaylen Brown, Celtics reveling in Jayson Tatum’s leap forward

Individual success in a team sport doesn’t always rub teammates the right way, but for Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics, the growth of Jayson Tatum into a superstar couldn’t be better.

With all the attention being focused on Boston Celtics All-Star forward Jayson Tatum, you wouldn’t be surprised if fourth-year shooting guard Jaylen Brown got a little jealous.

But that’s precisely the opposite of what we are seeing from the former No. 3 overall pick towards the player taken by the same team in the same draft position one year later.

Displaying a maturity well beyond his 23 years, the Georgian instead welcomes the love for his teammate taking the next step.

After another offensive eruption against the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday night, Brown spoke with team reporter Marc D’Amico about his feelings on Tatum’s sudden rise.

“You gotta want for your brother what you want for yourself,” he offered sagely.

“There’s a lot of guys in this league that are super talented, but a lot of them don’t know how to win or be leaders … So, as I’m learning, I think that’s an important part of the game that people forget about,” he added.

And it’s not like Brown is suddenly being lapped by his younger teammate — far from it, actually, with the Cal-Berkeley product averaging 20.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game this season.

The Marietta native has taken a fairly huge step forward himself this season, showing improved passing, handle, and body control that’s elevated him to become a top-30 scorer in the league.

The tandem have shown an amazing ability to feed off each other’s activity.

Brown uses Tatum’s newfound attention to drop daggers from beyond the arc under cover, and Tatum employs Brown’s novel capabilities as he drives, changing speed to draw contact, or dishing to the former Blue Devil, now open himself.

“We’ve both kinda taken leaps this year, and so it’s been fun,”said Tatum of the growth the Jay Team has undergone this year. “He’s been playing great all season, and he’s one of the biggest reasons why we’ve been winning.”

And the Duke product is very aware of the dynamic behind that winning being more than just a general feeling of goodwill towards teammates. In sacrificing for each other from top to bottom, Boston has managed to achieve a balance of egos and interests that was beyond their reach last season.

“That’s the sign of a good team, said Tatum. “We all enjoy playing with each other. It’s different guys every night.”

“Everybody just wants to win,” he added. “That’s the biggest thing.”

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Rajon Rondo has throwback game in win against Boston Celtics

Rajon Rondo could be a key player in the playoffs for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Rajon Rondo is a master at controlling the pace of games, whether it be turning tough defense into easy buckets or simply making timely plays in the halfcourt.

As the Los Angeles Lakers’ backup point guard, Rondo must maintain the team’s production on both ends, especially offensively. Though he isn’t as consistent as he was earlier in his career, Rondo had a throwback game in the Lakers’ 114-112 win Sunday against the Boston Celtics.

He tallied a season-high five steals and dished five assists, along with scoring four points in 22 minutes off the bench.

Rondo has averaged 1.7 steals a game during his career, and Sunday’s game was the first time since March 2019 he had five or more steals, when he had six in a win against the Charlotte Hornets.

The Celtics arguably have the best collection of wings in the NBA, with Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown and Gordon Hayward being some of the top players on the team.

The Lakers needed to secure the perimeter, and as their first line of defense, Rondo made defensive plays that helped the Lakers gain possession. The Lakers scored 20 points off turnovers, and they forced 17 turnovers. The Lakers rank third in points scored off turnovers (18.8), and they rank seventh in opponent’s turnovers (15.5).

Rondo’s effort and performance on defense shouldn’t be a surprise. A 14-year guard, Rondo ranked first in steals per game during the 2009-10 season. He’s ranked top five in steals two other times during his career, and he’s currently ranked seventh in steals among active players, per NBA.com.

This season Rondo has a defensive rating of 106.9, which isn’t as good compared to the standards he set early in the 2010s. While he was on the Celtics, Rondo was considered to be one of the best defensive point guards in the league, along with players such as Chris Paul.

During the 2010-11 season, Rondo had a defensive rating of 99.8; in the 2011-12 season he had a defensive rating of 97.9. When the Celtics won the championship in 2008, Rondo’s defensive rating was 97.1.

Rondo’s championship experience is going to bring the stability that will be necessary in the playoffs for the Lakers’ reserves.

His ability to control a game, whether it be slowing it down or speeding it up, is perhaps his best attribute. A premier floor general, Rondo has led the league in assists three times during his career. He’s averaging 5.3 assists per game this season.

With the playoff push ramping up in these next few weeks, if “playoff Rondo” can continue to emerge, that will bode well for the Lakers. Rondo has played some of his best basketball in the postseason.

In eight playoff appearances, Rondo has averaged double figures in scoring all but once, when he played with the Dallas Mavericks during the 2015 postseason. Rondo has also averaged 9.3 assists and 1.9 steals during the playoffs.

The Lakers will need as much firepower as possible in the playoffs, especially defensively. The Western Conference is filled with quality teams/ The Los Angeles Clippers have perhaps the most offensive scoring weapons in the league other than the Celtics. The Houston Rockets have a surging two-pronged attack in Russell Westbrook and James Harden.

But if Rondo can prove to be one of their key players, someone who has to be accounted for on both ends of the floor, the Lakers will have a good shot at the title.

The Lakers will play the New Orleans Pelicans at Staples Center on Tuesday to finish their three-game homestand.

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LeBron James hits go-ahead fadeaway jumper to seal Sunday win over Celtics

LeBron James hit a huge jump shot in the final seconds of Sunday’s game to help the Los Angeles Lakers get ahead in against the Celtics.

LeBron James hit an important go-ahead jumper with 25 seconds left and Anthony Davis sealed the game with a pair of free throws to help the Los Angeles Lakers escape with a 114-112 win on Sunday afternoon against the Boston Celtics. Boston’s Jayson Tatum finished with a game-high 41 points but he was called for an offensive foul on Boston’s final offensive possession as he tried to hit a shot to win the game or send it into overtime.

Although the Lakers ran out to a big lead early on, the Celtics were never far behind and helped create a game where they stayed on L.A.’s hip all night long. L.A.’s largest lead was 11, while Boston took a brief 7-point lead in the third quarter as Jayson Tatum caught fire in the second and third quarters, scoring 35 points before the fourth quarter had even started. For most of the night, Tatum was the best player on the floor.

Although Anthony Davis is one of the frontrunners for Defensive Player of the Year, the Lakers’ decision to switch him onto Tatum worked out well for Boston. Tatum did an excellent job of mixing up his drives and jump shots, getting to the line 15 times to lead everyone in the game.

In addition to the two stars, Kyle Kuzma provided a strong boost off the bench by scoring 16 points and being a part of the Lakers closing lineup against a very versatile Boston group.

Davis hit a huge 3-pointer with just over two minutes left in the game to give L.A.  a 108-105 lead. Gordon Hayward answered with a mid-range jumper to make it 108-107. Davis then missed a layup on the ensuing possession which led to Jaylen Brown 3-pointer to put Boston up 110-108 with 1:17 left. An exchange of empty possessions led to James being fouled on a lay-up attempt, but he missed the second free-throw leaving the Lakers down 110-109. However, the loose ball on the rebound was deemed to go off of Boston and gave the Lakers one more chance.

Brad Stevens also got called for a technical 15.5 seconds left, although Davis missed the free-throw. Davis then hit two free-throws on the next Lakers possession to give them a 113-110 lead. A loose ball foul on LeBron gave the Celtics two free-throws to cut the lead to 113-112.

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Boston’s Jerome Allen, Jaylen Brown share a love for deejaying

Fourth-year Boston Celtics shooting guard Jaylen Brown and assistant coach Jerome Allen share a love for deejaying despite being a generation apart in age.

The art of deejaying has many acolytes hidden in plain sight, and the Boston Celtics are no exception.

After news broke earlier this season that fourth-year shooting guard had picked up an interest in the wheels of steel (as vinyl turntables are often called by disc jockeys), it soon became clear that Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t the only Celtic alumnus with some skills in the craft.

Brown, a fan of music and culture, gravitated towards the art after witnessing DJ Diesel (Shaq’s nom de plume for his deejaying persona) perform in Boston this winter.

The resulting conversations would soon reveal assistant head coach Jerome Allen dabbled a bit back in the day on the ones and two (another insufferable nickname for turntables) himself.

“Music is just naturally a part of me,” Brown said in an interview with team reporter Taylor Snow. “Before I can remember what right or wrong was, music has just been there. My mom listened to music when she was pregnant with me, and it’s just always been around.”

So, for a player who bought a piano as one of his first big purchases after becoming a pro, interest in the musically transformative art of deejaying was a natural progression.

“It just keeps you engaged in something outside of basketball,” he added. “When you go home, it keeps you out of trouble.”

Music did the same for Jerome Allen a generation and change earlier, just as hip-hop was blooming into its golden age.

A fan of Philadelphia-area artists in particular, Allen would hunt for new tunes obsessively.

“Sometimes we would spend hours and hours inside the store looking for certain artists or rappers from other parts of the country,” noted the now-assistant head coach.

While Allen wasn’t the prospect Brown was coming out of college, he had a solid NBA career, bouncing from the Minnesota Timberwolves who drafted him in 1995 to the Indiana Pacers, Denver Nuggets and Milwaukee Bucks.

After his time in the NBA ended, he played overseas for several years, ending up in Turkey, where he picked up deejaying as a hobby to fill the time between games in a strange land where few spoke his language.

He convinced his wife and cousin to purchase the requisite equipment to ship out to him, and when his wife arrived, she was less than ecstatic their living room would have significant floorspace dedicated to Allen’s new interest.

“I met with his cousin, who is also a deejay, and we went and purchased all this high-end equipment that I know nothing about,” Aida, his wife, recalled.

Aida also recounted how it channeled Allen’s energy positively as friends and family would visit.

“Every time we had a visitor from the US, there had to be a rap battle, like a family rap challenge … It was crazy. But it kept us connected, and it kept us entertained, and gave us the ability to have fun.”

The hobby became a passion, and the hooper became a disc jockey as well, plying his new trade in everything from clubs to weddings.

To his co-workers on the Celtics, hearing that Allen disc-jockeyed came as a surprise, one some had difficulty believing at first. But Allen threw down at a recent annual Christmas event for homeless children the team organizes, and eyebrows quickly went up in amazement.

“When we had that Christmas party and he was actually deejaying,” Tatum said with an incredulous air, “I was like, ‘Whoa, that’s pretty crazy.'”

“He’s got some skills,” offered guard Marcus Smart. “Like he’s got some real skills. He’s definitely better than we expected.”

The shared love of the art has brought Brown and Allen together, the latter a fan of more contemporary south coast sounds like Outkast, Zaytoven and Lil Baby than the elder statesman’s tastes for the Sound of Philadelphia.

“For me, I look at music sort of like basketball,” said Brown.

“I see a rhythm, I see a beat – the beat of the ball sounds like it could be the beat of a drum. The pace, the motion, the fluidity is all the same. So music has always been a part of me, and basketball, I look at it the same way.”

“Music is an art. Basketball is a form of art,” he added.

“It’s probably one of the most important forms of art that’s been given to us,” noted Allen.

There’s long been an intertwined relationship between hooping and deejaying, and it’s refreshing to see it being rejuvenated for a new generation.

While there isn’t much truly new under the sun, the next generation’s takes on what came before keeps life fresh, and breathes new life into old art forms.

The return to the intersection of basketball and deejay culture may only just be getting underway in Boston, but the author of this piece — a deejay himself — and many others are excited to see where the remix will take us.

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Recharged by the Caribbean, Jaylen Brown says the best is yet to come

Ready for the final push to the playoffs after attending to business (and some relaxation) in the Caribbean, Boston Celtic shooting guard Jaylen Brown is up on the team’s prospects.

After a trip to the the Carribean, Boston Celtics shooting guard Jaylen Brown is ready to get back to work, but it wasn’t all beaches and sightseeing for the fourth-year player.

Spending the All-Star break in Cuba and the Bahamas, the Cal-Berkeley product headed to the a meeting of the NBA’s Player Association (NBPA) in the Bahamas — an interesting counterpoint to the backdrop of the 2020 All-Star Games in chilly Chicago.

Brown was actually in the Bahamas for business, joining other NBPA executives and members of the player’s union for NBA basketball players to conduct their yearly business.

The meetings, organized by the NBPA and the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism brought Brown to the tropical location, in the second year of his three-year term serving as the youngest vice-president in the NBPA.

The 6-foot-6 wing was elected one of several new vice presidents of the NBPA in 2019, along with Malcolm Brogdon of the Indiana Pacers and Bismack Biyombo of the Charlotte Hornets.

In an interview with the Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett, the Marietta native downplayed the business side of the trip, stating he, “did some traveling.”

“I went to Cuba, went to the Bahamas for the Players Association and things like that. I just got some rest, some mental rest. I hung out with family and friends. Now I’m ready to get back with the team and it’s all basketball from this point on.”

At those meetings, former teammate Kyrie Irving joined the Executive Committee, which also includes Andre Iguodala (First Vice President), Anthony Tolliver (Secretary-Treasurer), Bismack Biyombo, Malcolm Brogdon, Jaylen Brown, CJ McCollum and Garrett Temple (all Vice Presidents).

After the NBPA meetings, Brown headed on to Cuba, where he linked up with Cuban musician Arnaldo Rodríguez to tour the Lucecita Cultural Project, reports ADN Cuba.

The Cultural Project describes itself as an “artistic initiative with community character”, and features a number of musical productions, murals and other artistic endeavors on the group’s Facebook page.

After seeing the Project and several component workshops, Brown and Rodriguez shared an authentic creole dinner at the Talisman Studios Headquarters Restaurant, promising to return.

Done tending to business in paradise (with a little tourism thrown in), the former Golden Bear now turns his attention to the final stretch of the season before the playoffs in the bitter cold of the northern U.S.

Even though the Minnesota Timberwolves will be without star center Karl-Anthony Towns, Brown still sees the game as of high importance.

“It’s super important … It’s about us continuing to get better, cleaning up some of our habits and starting to make sacrifices and stuff necessary to get ready for the playoffs.”

“It’s the first game back. Everybody’s different in that regard. Some people went places; some people didn’t. Some people it’s like riding a bike and some people it’s not. I think everybody is a little different,” he continued.

“For us, we’ve got to find the right rhythm out there and find ways to win,” added Brown, alluding to the importance of not only maintaining the chemistry which has bound such a complex group of individual personalities into the most cohesive unit seen n the franchise since the Banner 17 era.

“So I’m looking forward to it,” noted the 23-year old, wise far beyond his years.

“We’ve got (28) games until the playoffs. Each and every one means something, so let’s get it going,” offered Brown.

This coming Friday evening on February 20th, the Celtics will do just that, kicking off a four-game west coast road trip to start their return to action against the Wolves.

Even without point guard Kemba Walker — who will rest with knee soreness after perhaps staying in the 2020 All-Star Game a bit longer than he should have — the game should be a great opportunity to continue the momentum that’s led the team to the NBA’s fourth-best record.

“The best is yet to come,” said Brown.

He very well may be right.

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