There is plenty of negative press around the Celtics at the moment, even after the franchise advanced to the ECF and Jaylen Brown says he’s embracing it.
Many NBA fans and insiders are saying that the C’s have had an ‘easy’ run to the ECF, after defeating two undermanned teams in Miami and Cleveland.
The further the Celtics advance, the more the team is left open to criticism, but Brown says it’s not something that bothers him anymore.
“Whatever you do is going to be scrutinized — or no matter how good you are, it’s never going to be enough or (bring) any praise or any media attention,” Brown told The Athletic. “It’s tough, but at the same time it is what it is. You’ve gotta embrace that villain. And as I’m getting older I’m starting to embrace it more. Embracing not giving a f**k whether they see (his value) or don’t see it, whether they appreciate it or don’t appreciate it. I’m focused on helping my team, helping my family, helping the city and I go from there.”
Brown and his running mate Jayson Tatum have taken the C’s to five conference finals appearances, but haven’t managed to get any further than that.
Boston have been labelled ‘chokers’ after going down to eighth seed Miami last season.
The Celtics shooting guard was front and center of the cricitism after he went 8-23 shooting and committed eight turnovers in his team’s Game 7 loss.
Having been through all that, the 27-year-old feels more ready than ever to get past the conference finals and chase a championship.
“It almost makes you stoic a little bit,” Brown said. “I feel like I’ve adopted that over the last years. And I’m embracing it even more: Just be a robot. Just come out here and do what you’ve gotta do. And that’s it.”
READ MORE: Snoop Dogg Weighs In on Klay Thompson’s Impending Free Agency