Jaylen Brown

Brown was rated a five-star recruit and ranked by Scout, ESPN, and 247Sports as the fourth best recruit in the class of 2015 behind Ben Simmons, Skal Labissière, and Brandon Ingram.[10] Rivals ranked him third in his class.[11]

On May 1, 2015, Brown committed to play for the Golden Bears at the University of California, Berkeley, under coach Cuonzo Martin and alongside fellow top-recruit Ivan Rabb.[12] He was heralded as an all-around prospect due to his athleticism.[13]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Jaylen Brown SF	Atlanta, GA	Wheeler (GA)	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	May 1, 2015
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 96
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 4   Rivals: 3  247Sports: 4  ESPN: 4
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "California 2015 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 26, 2017. "2015 California Golden Bears Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 26, 2017. "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 26, 2017.

Brown playing for the Celtics in 2018

On June 23, 2016, Brown was selected by the Boston Celtics with the third overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft.[19] On July 27, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Celtics after averaging 16.0 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals in six Summer League games.[20] He made his debut for the Celtics in their season opener on October 26 against the Brooklyn Nets, scoring nine points on 3-for-4 shooting, while adding two blocked shots in 19-plus minutes.[21] In his first career start on November 3, Brown scored 19 points in a 128–122 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.[22] On January 27, 2017, he scored a then career-high 20 points in a 128–98 win over the Orlando Magic.[23] Brown helped the Celtics claim the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, before helping them advance through to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were defeated by the Cavaliers in five games. Brown had a productive rookie season in 2016–17, with his role off the bench continuing to develop as the year went on. He appeared in 78 games for the Celtics during the regular season, with 20 starts. He averaged 17.2 minutes on the floor, 6.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists.[24] At the season's end, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.[25]

In the Celtics' 2017–18 season opener against the Cavaliers on October 17, 2017, Brown scored a then career-high 25 points in a 102–99 loss.[26] On November 18, he set a then career-high with 27 points and helped the Celtics win their 15th straight game with a 110–99 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.[27] On December 13 he had a 26-point effort against the Denver Nuggets.[28] Brown missed two weeks in March 2018 with a concussion.[29] On April 6, 2018, he set a then career-high with 32 points in a 111–104 win over the Chicago Bulls.[30] In Game 2 of the Celtics' first-round playoff series against the Milwaukee Bucks, Brown had a then playoff career-high 30 points in helping Boston take a 2–0 series lead with a 120–106 win. At age 21, Brown became the youngest player in Celtics history to score 30 or more points in a playoff game.[31] In Game 4, Brown set a new playoff career-high and scored a career-high 34 points in a 104–102 loss.[32] The Celtics went on to win the series in seven games, with Brown sitting out the second-round series opener with a strained right hamstring. He returned to action in Game 2 against the Philadelphia 76ers, scoring 13 points off the bench in a 108–103 win, helping the Celtics take a 2–0 series lead.[33] In Game 5, Brown scored 24 points in a 114–112 series-clinching win.[34] In Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Brown scored 27 points in a 109–99 loss to the Cavaliers.[35]

Brown struggled to start the season, with the Boston Globe criticizing him for taking too many two-point jump shots and an overall "lack of focus and discipline".[36] After the Celtics unexpectedly started the season with 10 wins and 10 losses, ESPN's Jackie MacMullan wrote that "nobody disappointed [the Celtics] more than Brown."[37] On December 6, Brown returned after missing three games with a bruised lower back and scored 21 points in a 128–100 win over the New York Knicks.[38] Two days later, he scored a game-high 23 points in a 133–77 win over the Chicago Bulls.[39] On December 31, he had a season-high 30 points in a 120–111 loss to the San Antonio Spurs.[40]

Brown signed a four-year, $115 million contract extension with the Celtics.[41] He tied his career-high 34 points this season against the Cleveland Cavaliers on December 28, 2019.[42] In January, he narrowly missed being selected to the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.[43] In the 2020 playoffs, the Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the third time in Brown's four years in the NBA following series victories over the Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors in four and seven games, respectively. However, Boston was eliminated in those Conference Finals by the Miami Heat in six games.[44]

On December 30, 2020, Brown scored a then career-high 42 points along with five rebounds and four assists in a 126–107 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.[45][46] On February 24, 2021, Brown was selected to the 2021 All-Star team as a reserve, his first time being named an NBA All-Star.[47] On April 15, Brown scored 40 points in a 121–113 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.[48] Brown's career-best season ended with only four regular season games left to be played, as he had to undergo wrist surgery for a torn scapholunate ligament in his left wrist.[49]

On October 20, 2021, in the Celtics' season-opener, Brown recorded a then career-high 46 points in a 138–134 double overtime loss to the New York Knicks while also setting a Celtics franchise record for points on an opening night.[50] On January 2, 2022, Brown surpassed that career-high, scoring 50 points, along with 11 rebounds, in a 116–111 overtime victory over the Orlando Magic.[51] On January 8, Brown recorded his first career triple-double with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in a 99–75 win over the New York Knicks.[52] On March 18, in a 126–97 win over the Sacramento Kings, Brown and Jayson Tatum each scored at least 30 points in the same game for the fourth time in the season and eight time overall; tying the record for the most such games with fellow Celtics' Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, who also recorded four such games in the 1986–87 NBA season.[53][54] The following game, in a 124–104 victory over the Denver Nuggets, Brown and Jayson Tatum broke the record by both scoring 30 points with over 60% shooting from the field.[55]

On 3 May, in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Brown scored 25 of his 30 points in the first half along with 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals in a 109–86 win over the reigning-champion Milwaukee Bucks.[56] Four days later, he posted 27 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists in a 103–101 Game 3 loss.[57] On May 21, in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Brown scored a playoff career-high 40 points on 14-of-20 shooting from the field in a 109–103 loss against the Miami Heat.[58] In Game 7 of the series, Brown logged 24 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists in a 100–96 victory over the Heat, advancing to the NBA Finals for the first time in his career, and the Celtics' first NBA Finals appearance since 2010.[59] In Game 1 of the Finals, Brown posted 24 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a 120–108 win over the Golden State Warriors.[60] In Game 3 of the Finals, Brown logged 27 points, nine rebounds and five assists in a 116–100 win over the Golden State Warriors to take a 2–1 series lead.[61] Boston would go on to lose to Golden State in six games despite Brown's 34-point outing in the 103–90 close-out loss in Game 6.[62]

On December 2, 2022, Brown recorded 37 points, along with 14 rebounds and 5 assists in a 120–116 overtime loss against the Miami Heat. He sent the game to overtime by banking in his long 3 with 1.7 seconds to play in regulation.[63] On December 13, Brown posted 25 points, a season-high 15 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals in a 122–118 overtime win over the Los Angeles Lakers.[64] On December 25, Brown had 29 points, along with five rebounds and four assists in a 139–118 blowout win against the Milwaukee Bucks.[65] He and Jayson Tatum (41 points) combined for 70 points in a game for the eighth time in their careers.[66]

Brown in 2023

On January 11, 2023, Brown scored a then season-high 41 points on 15-of-21 shooting from the field and grabbed 12 rebounds in a 125–114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. It was the fifth 40-point game in Brown's career and the 10th time that Brown and Tatum (31 points) combined to score 70+ points. The Celtics are undefeated in those games.[67] On February 2, 2023, Brown was named to his second NBA All-Star Game.[68] On March 6, Brown posted a near triple-double with 32 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists in a 118–114 overtime loss against the Cleveland Cavaliers.[69] On March 13, Brown scored a season-high 43 points in a 111–109 loss against the Houston Rockets.[70] On March 26, Brown recorded 41 points and 13 rebounds in a 137–93 blowout win over the San Antonio Spurs.[71]

In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round against the Atlanta Hawks, he posted 29 points and 12 rebounds in a 112–99 victory.[72] In Game 4, he and Jayson Tatum both scored 31 points, leading the team to a 129–121 victory.[73] During the second quarter, he took off his protective mask he has worn since February due to a stray elbow from teammate Jayson Tatum.[74] In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers, Brown and Tatum combine for 50 points in a 114–102 victory.[75] The Celtics reached the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost to the Miami Heat in seven games.[76]

On July 25, 2023, Brown signed a five-year, $304 million contract extension, surpassing Nikola Jokić's $276 million extension as the richest deal in NBA history.[77]