Time to play some ‘D’
Brown vows to help Smart set the tone
NEWPORT, R.I. — Danny Ainge sent a lot of defensive talent out the door to bring in Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward.
Avery Bradley and Jae Crowder are gone, but as two of the three players most responsible for setting the defensive edge on this team under coach Brad Stevens, they won’t be forgotten any time soon, especially if the Celtics start hemorrhaging points.
Though Jaylen Brown begins his second year with a need for improvement in all areas, the young forward’s next big step may very well come on the defensive end. Brown will draw many of the high-octane stars taken on by Crowder, like LeBron James.
And for that, according to the Celts’ last remaining defensive tone setter, Brown has to “slow down” from the sometimes frantic rookie who missed assignments because of his unfamiliarity with the NBA game.
“You actually let your instincts take over, and do what you’re supposed to do,” Marcus Smart said of what he means by slowing down on defense. “You’re in the right spots. Last year (Brown) was out of place a lot, because he still didn’t know what he was doing, so he was rushing trying to do things instead of letting his instincts take over. He has to trust in his instincts and trust in the techniques that he’s learned.
“(But) he’s slowing down on both ends, offensive and defensive,” added Smart. “I thought he did a really good job last year with what he was assigned. But this year he understands a little more that we don’t have Avery, and we don’t have Jae, so he does have to come in and take on that role.”
Smart, more than anyone, is going to give the Celtics their defensive juice this season. Even with Bradley and Crowder, Smart has generally been the Celtic most likely to change a game with his hell-bent style of play.
But he’ll need lots of help, and he sees Brown as an inevitable part of the solution.
“He’s 20 years old. I’m only 23, but he’s coming into his second year as a guy who is still learning, but he’s picking it up fast, and he’s gonna be really good,” said Smart. “(Losing) Avery and Jae just opens up opportunities for guys like Jaylen to step up and take over that responsibility. Gives him a chance to show what he can do. His size (6-foot-7, 225 pounds), his body, his wing span; he can be a really great defender. That helps him a lot, helps him to do things a lot of guys aren’t able to. With his physique and his athleticism he’s going to be a great defender.”
Brown would prefer not to be singled out in this regard, saying, “It’s on the team, us as a group. We had some good defenders last year to set the tone, but it’s going to take a team effort, and I believe that. I don’t think one guy is responsible for locking someone down. The team will determine defensively how we can be.”
That said, Brown is pleased with his improving defensive self, saying, “I think I’m coming along fine. I’m where I’m supposed to be at the right time.
“At the end of the day it’s just basketball. I’ve always considered myself a defensive player — a point of pride. That separates good defenders from bad defenders. There’s effort, pride and mentality. Those are the things Avery used to talk about. If we give the same effort and play consistent every night, we’ll be fine.”
Brown’s athleticism and size also point to a particularly versatile defender who, ideally, will be able to guard everyone from point guards to power forwards.
“Playing in summer league I guarded multiple positions — 1’s, 2’s, 3’s and 4’s. I’m ready to guard whoever I need to guard,” he said. “I think it fits me perfectly. Growing up I never considered myself to have a position. I just called myself a basketball player. Like our trainer said: We train basketball players, not positions. That’s exactly what Brad is getting at. We have multiple positions to guard, fly around to multiple areas. That’s what a lot of it means.”
Brown also just described Stevens’ vision.
“At the end of the day,” said the coach, “we’ll have other guys on the court that do that too, but being able to be a really versatile, lockdown, switchable wing is going to be really important.”