A pair of open minds
Young Celtics learn on the job
WALTHAM — Jaylen Brown has given a hyphenated nickname — “Seven— to himself and new teammate Jayson Tatum in reference to their respective jersey numbers, and the rookie said he’s fine with it.
The two young Celtics share all kinds of quaint connections. Brown was a rookie last year. Tatum will be a rookie in the coming season. Each was the third pick in his draft. Both their names start with “Jay.” And when they play together this summer, starting with Monday’s opener against Philadelphia in Salt Lake City, they could emerge as one of the most dynamic duos on the summer league circuit.
For now, Tatum can use Brown as his first NBA role model, though for a brief moment during a 3-point shooting contest yesterday it was Tatum in the lead, hitting 10 straight on the left side of the arc.
Brown eventually caught up, calmly saying, “He’s not going anywhere” just before hitting another deep shot in his late comeback, and punctuating the whole exercise with, “That’s two days in a row, baby!”
It also helps that they play the same position, though Tatum is taking more basic cues for now.
“He’s been helpful through the process, every drill, making sure I understand it,” said Tatum. “He gives me his impressions.”
“Coachable” is one of the first words that Celtics management types use to describe Tatum, and Brown can see that quality, too. Indeed, the second-year forward sees a lot of his rookie self in Tatum.
“By the look in his eyes, it’s like everything is new to him coming out of high school, coming out of college, 19 years old,” said Brown. “I was 19 last year, so there’s going to be a lot of questions that have to be asked. At least he has someone here this year that’s seen everything the same thing that he’s seeing. So I can give him a lot more advice and help him out a little bit because I was in the exact same position last year.
“We’ve been working out together pretty much every day, I think, since we’ve both been back,” he said. “So it’s only been two days, but I think we’re doing it. We’re in the weight room together. We’re doing the same workouts. I guess everything is together. So we’re going to get better together, grow together, and continue to get better. And keep moving toward the season.”
Tatum already understands the Brown timeline, which ended not only with a regular playoff role on an Eastern Conference finalist, but also with inclusion on the NBA’s all-rookie second team.
“I understand, watched a lot of how Jaylen started off, earned his playing time and played significant minutes,” said Tatum.
Brown, on the other hand, wants Tatum to keep those eyes trained on the same process that guided him last year.
“Just be an open book. Just look at it as a chance to get better,” said Brown. “Come to work every day and just try to continue to better your game. Don’t get frustrated. I think the best advice somebody told me my rookie year was to keep your confidence, you’re going to need it. So I told him the same thing.
“Be a sponge. That’s what I did last year,” he said. “It’s crazy to think how fast time has gone by. Around this time last year, I was a rookie. I was over there looking the exact same way, I had the exact same reaction to some of the drills that we’re doing today. I just tell them to be a sponge.”
That’s certainly how Brown plans to handle his second summer league.
“I look at it as the same process. I’m more experienced but I’m still learning, I’m still an open canvas,” he said. “Coach Jerome Allen, he’s the coach of summer league, let him paint the picture and go from there.”