Celtics

After watching three teammates make the All-Defensive team, Jaylen Brown lobbies for his spot

"I'm going to start having to run my own campaign for First-Team All-Defense"

By Khari Thompson

December 16, 2023

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Email
• Email
• 3

The question posed to Jaylen Brown was about dunks, but he wanted to talk about defense.

He had several slams on Friday night that ignited the TD Garden crowd during a 128-111 win against the Magic.

His best of the night came when Derrick White fed him the ball just above the block with 4:32 left in the second quarter. In one motion, Brown caught the pass, gathered himself, and leaped for a poster-worthy one-handed slam over Orlando’s Anthony Black.

But after the game, Brown directed the attention to his defense rather than the dunks. He used the press conference podium to lobby for an honor that has eluded him in his eight-year NBA career — a spot on the NBA’s All-Defensive team.

“I also had a couple of steals, a couple blocks. I’m going to start having to run my own campaign for First-Team All-Defense,” Brown said. “But, nah, it’s cool. I’m really locked in on both sides of the ball. I’m really feeling comfortable and like I’m excelling, making plays at the rim, taking the ball from people, doing my job and more on the defensive side whether people want to pay attention to it or not.”

Brown has a pair of All-Star appearances. He’s played in the NBA Finals. He signed the largest contract in NBA history, a 5-year $304 million Supermax extension, over the summer.

But, he really seems to want to be recognized for his defense this year. This marks the second night in a row he’s talked about it.

“I feel like I’m playing some of the best defense of my career,” Brown said Thursday. “I made a commitment before the season that I wanted to be First-Team All-Defense. I feel like I’ve been living up to that.”

The Celtics have three players who have made an All-Defensive team on their roster — Derrick White, Jrue Holliday, and Al Horford. Robert Williams III, whom the Celtics traded in the deal that brought Holliday to Boston, was also a selection last year.

The Celtics have had an All-Defensive selection in five of the eight years Brown has been on the team. Most of those came from Marcus Smart, who won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2022. Smart made an All-Defensive team in 2019, 2020, and 2022. Al Horford made an All-Defensive team in 2018, and White made one last year.

A little more than a quarter of the way through the season, Brown is tied for 36th in the league in steals (1.2 per game). He’s averaging 0.7 blocks. He’s second on the team and 18th in the league in defensive win shares.

The Celtics are in the top-5 in defensive rating, defensive rebounding, fewest opponents’ points off of turnovers, fewest opponents’ points off fast breaks, and fewest opponents’ points in the paint. At 19-5, the Celtics have the best record in the NBA.

Does Brown have a legitimate case? That’s for the voters to decide.

There’s more that goes into the vote than just stats. What kind of matchups does a player take on? Are they making plays that don’t show up on the stat sheet? How does their role impact their team’s success?

Any award that is decided by votes comes with a degree of subjectivity. And the Celtics’ record, along with Brown’s status as one of the best players on one of the best defensive teams in the league, could help.

There’s a whole lot of basketball left to be played before the award is decided.

But, one thing is for sure. Brown wants a spot on the All-Defensive team and he isn’t afraid to make the case for himself.