NBA FINALS: CELTICS VS. MAVERICKS

June 8, 2024

Jaylen Brown

Boston Celtics

Practice Day

Q. Jaylen, when you are out there looking for specific matchups offensively, what's the timing like for you with the ball and you're looking for the matchup versus I can't get to this matchup, I have to move the ball, like trying to avoid stagnation. Is there an internal clock? Is there something that you have to realize, okay, we can't get to this matchup and I have to move the ball and see if we can get to a different matchup?

JAYLEN BROWN: Yeah, it just depends on how fast we get the ball up the floor. If we are walking the ball up the floor and we start the offense at 17 or whatever, it's different from you starting your offense at 20 because you've got the ball up the floor.

So I think that goes into it, if you've got a little bit more time, maybe you can scan the floor a little bit. But for the most part, you want to kind of make quick decisions and keep the ball moving.

Q. Jason Kidd just said -- he said it twice that, you're the best player on the Celtics. I'm just trying to get your reaction to that.

JAYLEN BROWN: I don't have no reaction.

Q. Why do you think he said it?

JAYLEN BROWN: I don't know. It's a team game. We're trying to focus on that, and, you know, everybody has their own opinions.

Q. How is your mindset coming into Game 2, especially after an explosive game in Game 1?

JAYLEN BROWN: Say that one more time.

Q. I said what is your mindset coming into Game 2 and finishing the game early, specifically after Game 1?

JAYLEN BROWN: Yeah, coming out even more aggressive but even more disciplined. You know, Dallas is a really good team, and they have responded very well to Game 1 losses. They come back in Game 2. So we're going to get a forceful, more aggressive team on Sunday, tomorrow. We've got to be ready because they are really good after a loss. So we can't be surprised, and that's what I'm preparing my team for.

Q. When you went back and looked at the tape, what do you think you guys really did well defensively to kind of take them away from what they liked to get to?

JAYLEN BROWN: Just trying to keep them off balance. They got -- they are here for a reason. They are well-coached. They do their roles. They perform their roles well. So can't give them the same look every time because they are -- you know, the more comfortable they get, the better they are.

So just try to keep them off balance.

Q. In '16, you visited the Finals, you went to Oracle. It was a couple weeks before you got drafted. What did you take from that experience just like being in that NBA environment a few weeks and you didn't know where you were going to be, whether it would be Boston or not? What do you remember about that?

JAYLEN BROWN: I remember it being a pretty cool experience. I see some young guys in our league now, like walking around and stuff like that.

I think that's pretty cool when I was -- it was before I got drafted, like you said, and I was still, you know, fresh out of college and, you know, I knew some -- because I played at Cal Berkeley, I knew some of the guys on the Warriors. Steve Kerr's son was my friend at Cal. I went to a lot of Warriors games that season.

You know, I got to meet a lot of those guys and talk to a lot of those guys before I even got to the NBA. Mainly Andre Iguodala, who is like an older brother, mentor, to me now.

But, you know, those experiences were everything. You know, being able to see what a winning environment looked like. Being able to talk to guys who have done things at the highest of levels and then give you encouraging words and wish you well and good luck. That was -- that was my experience in the NBA Finals in [2016] or whenever that was before I got drafted. I think that's part of the reason why I was able to get back.

Q. One way to interpret Jason Kidd's comments is trying to get rivalry going that might hurt the team. Why do you think there's perception that you guys are not happy to be teammates and share the ball and all that?

JAYLEN BROWN: I'm not sure. I'm not sure. But we've been just extremely focused on what our roles and our jobs are. We have all had to sacrifice. Jason (Kidd) has had to do that at the highest of levels, right, and I respect him and tip his cap for it.

Right now, at this point, it's whatever it takes to win and we can't let any outside interpretations try to get in between us.

Q. I know on Thursday night Kyrie said he thought it would be louder in here. This crowd, you've challenged it before, ahead of Game 7 last year against Philly, you said you needed everybody to be loud. They responded. What did you guys think about the crowd on Thursday night here and what do you think you're going to see here on Sunday?

JAYLEN BROWN: I thought the crowd was good. I think we can be a little bit better. So I expect us to be even louder. Sunday, we are going to need our fans to be hyped. It's not just team versus team. It's crowd versus crowd. It's gas station versus gas station. Supermarket versus supermarket. It's the whole city versus the whole city. We need everybody.

Q. Your team's spacing offensively has really been great the last couple years, and I just wonder what that process has been like in terms of figuring out the best ways to absorb space and to be in the right spot to start the next action and to get the shot -- to get the best shot that you can get on each possession.

JAYLEN BROWN: Yeah, just watching film, taking your time. Seeing and reading the game. Being aggressive. Not hesitating. But also, you know, making the right plays. Like you said, being in the right spot. Spacing has a lot to do with that. Making sure our team is properly spaced, and then being aggressive from there. We expect them to be a lot more aggressive on defense, Dallas, coming out into this Game 2.

So that's going to put an emphasis on us to be more disciplined. We have to get to our spacing well. We've got to make the right read. Got to take care of the ball. Can't do stupid fouls because we expect a great punch from them.