Jaylen Brown calls out Celtics fans for mediocre energy, hopes for raucous Game 7
BOSTON -- Thus far in the postseason, the Celtics have played six games on their home floor. They're 3-3 in those games, and the most recent showing led to the home fans booing the team off the floor in the third quarter and heading for the exits well ahead of the final buzzer in the fourth quarter.
Home-court advantage has not been a strength, to say the least.
But Jaylen Brown wants to erase all of that on Sunday, when the Celtics host the 76ers in Game 7 of their conference semifinals matchup. And he went ahead and called out the fans for not bringing their best energy to the Garden this postseason.
"I'm hoping that it's gonna be loud and it's gonna be rockin'," Brown said on his expectations for Game 7. "Celtics fans, they -- y'all love to call us out, right? So I'm gonna call you guys out this time. Like, energy at the Garden has been OK at best all playoffs."
"OK at best" is not what anybody is looking for, so Brown implored everyone -- inside and outside the Garden -- to bring it on Sunday.
"Game 7, I expect -- if you're there, or if you're not there, if you're in your home, if you're watching at a bar, if you're watching down the street at a friend's house, I don't care. I need you to be up, I need you to come with the energy, because we're gonna need every bit of it," Brown said. "No excuses. We need everybody. So I'm calling you guys out. Let's make sure the Garden is ready to go."
To be fair to the fans, they weren't given any reason to cheer the last time they filled the Garden, when the Sixers controlled play from start to finish and won by double-digits. If that happens again, then surely, the crowd will get taken out of the game.
Yet if the Celtics play to their capabilities, the noise and energy levels inside the Garden should be precisely what Brown hopes to see, hear and feel on Sunday.
"When the Garden gets going, there's nothing like it," Brown said. "So I'm expecting Game 7 to be a great basketball environment, and I'm looking forward to seeing you guys there."