Jaylen Brown commenced the night with a pregame dismissal on Tuesday. However, it was Jayson Tatum, Paul George, and the Boston Celtics who had the final say in a commanding 123-101 victory over Brown’s Philadelphia 76ers.
This matchup marked the highly awaited first encounter between Tatum and Brown following their widely discussed separation as teammates on the Celtics. The two had previously led Boston to an NBA championship, but now they face a harsh beginning as adversaries due to Brown’s offseason trade to the 76ers.
Tatum outshone Brown in the lopsided contest, contributing 21 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two blocks. Brown faced early foul complications, racking up three fouls in the first half, which hindered his performance. He concluded the game with 13 points, five rebounds, two assists, and four turnovers.
Ultimately, it was George who assumed the spotlight against his old team. Part of the return from Philadelphia for acquiring Brown from the Celtics, George found his rhythm and led all scorers with 36 points and five rebounds, shooting 14 of 22 from the floor and 6 of 11 from behind the arc.
Brown commences with pregame snub of Tatum
The atmosphere was tense right from the start as Brown deliberately dismissed Tatum in front of over 20,000 fans in Philadelphia, along with a national television audience. Before the eagerly awaited 76ers-Celtics clash, Brown expressed that he had no intentions of conversing with Tatum.
True to his word, Brown did not engage.
As the teams took the floor for warm-ups before the tip, Tatum approached his ex-Celtics teammate in an attempt to give him a fist bump. Brown, preoccupied with spinning the basketball, acted as though Tatum was invisible.
Tatum then turned to Brown’s teammate, LeBron James, who was more than willing to exchange some pregame affection with his competitor before getting into the game.
The moment was undeniably awkward, leaving Tatum hovering at midcourt beside Brown as if he had just been ignored.
Fortunately, the ball was tipped to alleviate the pregame tension. After the game, Brown informed reporters that he was merely attempting to concentrate and not snubbing Tatum, according to ESPN’s Kris Rhim:
“I’m just focused on coming out and doing what’s best for my team. Everything else was just — honestly, I wasn’t paying attention. But credit to Jayson, he played well tonight. Kudos to the Celtics, they executed and shot excellently. They were the better team tonight.”
Tatum, Celtics dominate, maintain control
As the game action began, Tatum delivered the initial strike. In their first one-on-one confrontation, Brown measured Tatum from the wing beyond the three-point line. Tatum effectively smothered Brown, causing him to lose the ball out of bounds, resulting in a turnover.
Tatum proceeded to net 11 points in the first quarter, leading the Celtics to finish the period with a 30-23 edge.
Tatum slams dunk over LeBron
Following that, Tatum and Brown frequently guarded each other when on the court together. However, Tatum made his most significant impact on the game with a thunderous dunk over James in the second half, as the 76ers were working to close a 13-point deficit from the third quarter.
The 76ers did manage to rally back and tie the game at 76. Yet, the hot shooting from beyond the arc by the Celtics, highlighted by George, allowed Boston to extend their lead to a maximum of 25 points in the final stretch.
The Celtics posted an impressive shooting percentage of 50.5% from the field and 44.9% (22 of 45) on three-pointers, while holding the 76ers to 41.8% overall and a mere 29.7% (11 of 37) from three-point range.
Tyrese Maxey led the 76ers with 24 points. James recorded 11 points, eight rebounds, and five assists but struggled from three-point range, shooting 1 of 6. Joel Embiid contributed 16 points and six rebounds but managed only 2 of 9 shooting from the field.
The ultimate outcome was a resounding victory for the Celtics (9-2), allowing them to overtake the 76ers (9-3) for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
No postgame engagement between Tatum and Brown
Once the game concluded, Brown exchanged hugs with several of his former Celtics teammates but walked off the court without acknowledging Tatum, who was conducting a postgame interview with NBC.
Meanwhile, Tatum refrained from mentioning Brown by name in his interview, downplaying the significance of Tuesday’s outcome.
“Every game counts as one,” Tatum remarked regarding the game result. “No game is larger than another, specifically in the regular season. It’s one game. Just one game. The excitement is definitely over, and we prepare for tomorrow.”
How much animosity exists really?
Given the talk leading up to Tuesday’s match, Brown’s frosty reception towards Tatum was anticipated.
Tatum has minimized any perceived tension with his former All-NBA teammate.
“There’s no animosity, there’s no beef,” Tatum previously stated in discussions about his relationship with Brown.
For Brown, who articulated numerous grievances prior to his trade from the Celtics in the offseason, it is evident that some form of conflict exists. Or lamb chops, as he humorously referenced.
“There’s no beef, but there might be a little lamb chops and gravy,” Brown shared in past comments regarding his dynamics with Tatum.
Brown reiterated on Sunday that he does not wish to converse with Tatum.
“I mean, he’s on his side, I’m on my side,” Brown stated, as noted by ESPN’s Kris Rhim. “Just playing basketball. We’re both trying to win, so there’s nothing to discuss. Just check the ball up.”
And indeed, they checked the ball up — this time leaning in favor of Tatum and the Celtics.
