Jaylen Brown Makes Celtics History With His Absurdly Efficient 40-Point Game Against Lakers
BOSTON (CBS) -- Jaylen Brown has been having a career-year for the Celtics, putting up big numbers on a nightly basis. On Thursday night, he was simply on fire in a big win over the shorthanded Lakers.
Brown rarely missed in Boston's 121-113 victory in L.A., dropping 40 points to lead the Celtics to their fifth straight victory. And we mean rarely missed.
Brown shot an incredible 17-for-20 in the victory, shooting an absurd 85 percent from the floor. He became the first player in Celtics franchise history to score 40 points on 85 percent shooting.
Brown did a lot of his damage around the rim, with an array of driving layups and loud dunks. He went 4-for-5 on midrange jumpers, and 3-for-5 from downtown. Making his shooting numbers even more impressive is that one of Brown's three misses came off a running heave from beyond half court at the end of the third quarter.
It's never a bad night when you make a little Celtics history. Mix in a win against the Lakers on their home court -- with fans in the stands for the first time all season -- and it was a great night for Brown and the Celtics.
"I just wanted to come out and be aggressive," he said after the game. "The Celtics-Lakers matchup is a matchup that kids dream about, so regardless of who's on the floor, I'm excited to play. That energy, having those Lakers fans back in the arena, we just wanted to come out and get a win."
Brown's teammates were certainly thrilled with his performance:
First player with 40 points on 85% shooting in franchise history ???????????? pic.twitter.com/dCHfa6pUmC
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 16, 2021
As was his head coach. Brad Stevens has seen plenty of impressive nights from Brown, but on Thursday, he said the swingman was simply "unreal."
"Tonight he was really dialed in scoring the ball," said Stevens. "You're not going to always shoot as efficiently as he did tonight, obviously that's like once-a-season type numbers usually. But he's had a great year and he continues to get better. Tonight was the night he got going, and we tried to ride that as much as possible."
Thursday night was the third time that Brown has hit the 40-point mark in his career, with all three of those games coming this season. He's shooting a career-best 49.3 percent from the floor for the year, averaging a career-high 24.6 points per game.