Speaking with CelticsBlog, Brown says the post was about pride in a team exceeding expectations.
Despite rumors swirling around the Boston Celtics this season, Jaylen Brown sees a simpler story than what's trending online.
In a feature by Noa Dalzell for CelticsBlog, Brown addressed the reaction to a recent post comparing this year’s Celtics to last season’s group - and made it clear he’s focused on pride, not perception.
“We were supposed to be tanking, that was the talk,” Brown told Dalzell. “To be in the top five teams in the league? I'm proud of that. I'm extremely proud. Ain't nobody can tell me nothing.”
That sentiment captures the reality of Boston’s season.
The team entered the year without franchise cornerstone Jayson Tatum, who continues to recover from the ruptured Achilles tendon he suffered during the second round of the 2025 playoffs. As a result, expectations understandably dipped outside the locker room.
Brown, however, never bought into the idea that this would be some lost year.
“Everybody was calling it a gap year,” he said to Dalzell. “How do you go from a gap year to top five in the East? That's a big jump. That's not a small jump. People want to skip over that. I'm not gonna let you skip over it. That is a big deal.”
The context matters.
Boston reshaped much of its championship core last offseason: the team moved Kristaps Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks, sent Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers, and saw longtime leader Al Horford depart in free agency. When you combine that turnover with Tatum’s absence, it’s easy to see why many projected a step back.
Despite these factors, Boston has surged near the top of the Eastern Conference standings, thanks in large part to Brown elevating his game to another level.
“The thing I posted, that was about celebrating our group,” Brown told Dalzell. “People make it seem like it was about me, because that's what people wanted it to be about. But in reality, I'm just so proud of our group. I'm extremely proud.”
On the court, that pride shows up in production.
Brown is averaging a career-best 29.3 points per game. He is also taking on more playmaking responsibility, steadying a roster that has needed him to be both engine and tone-setter.
He’s also kept perspective on Tatum’s recovery process.
“If you hear me talk about anything in my most recent streams, I mentioned how proud I am of my team, I mentioned how proud I am of JT's progression,” Brown said. “It's all that type of stuff.”
Whether or not Tatum returns this season, Boston looks poised to extend its playoff streak - and if you ask Brown, that alone is proof this year was never a “gap” to begin with.
Feb 3, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) reacts against the Dallas Mavericks during the first quarter at American Airlines Center. (Kevin Jairaj/Imagn Images)JOIN THE CONVERSATION:
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Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.