Brown nearly skipped NBA bubble after grandfather was diagnosed with cancer
BOSTON— Jaylen Brown considered skipping the NBA restart after his grandfather, Willie, was diagnosed with cancer.
The Celtics star, speaking on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Tuesday, said his grandfather found out bout his diagnosis right before the idea of a bubble in Orlando came to fruition. Willie, who had been living with Brown, needed Brown’s help.
Brown, who leaned on his grandfather to be his personal trainer during the COVID-19 pandemic, called him “the toughest guy I’ve ever met” while speaking to DeGeneres.
“He’s like a superhero,” Brown said. “He’s been to the Vietnam War, he’s been shot in the head twice, he’s had a heart attack, cancer, COVID, all at the same time, and has beat it all.”
Initially, Brown said Willie was reluctant to start chemotherapy, understandably worn down and exhausted. Brown said his grandfather told him he was done fighting, and he was tired.
So they struck a deal.
The plan: Brown would go down and play basketball as long as Willie kept “playing” and fighting himself. While Brown worked hard to spearhead social justice efforts in Orlando and win games for the Celtics, Willie would do everything in his power to keep battling.
“He liked the sound of that, and he signed up,” said Brown, whowas instrumental in the Celtics’ run to the Eastern Conference finals.
Brown said Willie, who is often referred to as “The Great Will B,” is “doing great now.”
He and DeGeneres discussed several other topics, including his mother, Michelle. Brown made sure to give his mom a shoutout at the beginning of the conversation, joking that she would disown him if he didn’t.
DeGeneres praised Brown’s upbringing, saying that Michelle “made a good one.”
“You’re a really good guy,” she added.
DeGeneres praised the Celtic for his work in the community and garnering the NBA Community Assist Award. Brown said that helping out is all he knows and is something his family taught him over the years.
“It’s a little bit strange, a little bit awkward for receiving recognition for being into the community and helping out,” Brown said. “It’s a strange dynamic for me, because my family and the people around me have always instilled that giving back is an obligation.”
Brown also discussed his Juice Foundation, which strives to spread positive energy to help young men and women through education while bettering the community and world.
DeGeneres presented Brown with a $10,000 check to benefit the foundation, and she also surprised him with a backpack full of tea as an early birthday gift.
“I love tea,” Brown said. “I know that’s probably a strange dynamic for a large guy to love tea, but it’s the truth.”