


Jaylen Brown played through pain in the second half of Wednesday’s Celtics win.
Brown said he rolled his ankle in the second quarter of Boston’s 117-113 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, which “slowed (him) down.” He played 39 minutes in the win, scoring a team-high 25 points and adding six assists and three steals, but committed two costly turnovers late in regulation that helped send the game to OT.
“I’m just pushing through,” Brown told reporters postgame. “I think this is definitely the rougher part physically during the season. I’ve had some injuries and things like that, but I try to make myself available every night. I’ll make no excuses; it is what it is. But I’m a little beat up. I’ll be ready (Thursday).”
Brown credited reserve guard Jaden Springer for providing the necessary defensive intensity while he played through his injury. Springer notched four steals and successfully silenced Clippers hot hand Kevin Porter Jr. after entering the game late in the third quarter.
“Jaden just came in and just hawked the ball, gave us some energy on defense and just helped us get a win,” Brown told reporters. “So you’ve just got to commend that. That’s huge.”
Four days earlier, Brown was seen icing his face postgame after taking a shot to the forehead in an overtime loss to Atlanta. He’s missed time with hip and shoulder injuries this season, playing in 37 of the Celtics’ first 44 games.
“It’s a mental challenge, but it’s a physical one, too,” Brown told reporters. “Just trying to be available each and every night through the physicality, through injuries and stuff like that and just trying to put your best foot forward. But it’s a challenge, and we’ve just got to continue to choose to meet that challenge every day.”
The Celtics played Wednesday’s game without veterans Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford, who sat out on the first night of a back-to-back. They’ll visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday.