With a roster that features seven players aged 23 or younger, it’s imperative for up-and-coming stars to play well if the Boston Celtics hope to have a successful year.
For their home matchup against the New York Knicks on Oct. 24, the sophomore Jaylen Brown did just and celebrated his 21st birthday at the same time.
The University of California product achieved a game-high 23 points on 9-16 shooting and led the Celtics to a 110-89 victory over the Knicks, sending Kristaps Porzingis and company to a 0-3 start.
Brown electrified the crowd all evening by making plays like this one:
That @FCHWPO guy is pretty athletic too, huh? https://t.co/BCMVeWvh5f
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) October 24, 2017
Although the 21-year-old was the star of the evening, rookie Jayson Tatum had an imprint as well by putting up 22 points in 31 minutes of action. Both of their superb performances allowed them to become the first Celtics duo at 21 or younger to both have 20 or more points.
Jaylen has experienced an increased workload to say the least, who now averages 35.0 minutes per game following his rookie season where he averaged just 17.2.
While a celebration for the young man is in order, Brown should remember to not party too hard as the Celtics are right back at it on Oct. 26 when they hit the road for Milwaukee and strive to win three straight.