Celtics’ Jaylen Brown Dealing With Hand Injury

After the Boston Celtics beat the Oklahoma City Thunder last night (4/3), Jaylen Brown told NBA reporters that he’s dealing with a left hand injury. 

Brown doesn’t expect to miss any games. 

Jaylen Brown said he has a sprain or strain in a ligament in his left hand and though it bothered him a bit tonight, he doesn’t think it’ll be anything to be concerned about.

— Jared Weiss (@JaredWeissNBA) April 4, 2024

One of the top players in the NBA, Brown is averaging 23.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.5 blocks for the Celtics this season while shooting 50.1% from the field, 35.8% from beyond the arc and 70.1% from the free-throw line. 

The Celtics signed Brown to a five-year, $286 million extension last summer. Brown is making $28.5 million this season. He’ll make $49.4 million in 2024-25. 

The Celtics have the best record in the NBA. They are 60-16 and have clinched home-court advantage throughout the 2024 playoffs. 

“I think just preparing your mind for the challenges to come,” Brown said, via The Athletic. “You might be in a playoff game where you’re not feeling well. You’re banged up, your hand hurts, your back hurts or whatever the case may be, and nobody around here wants to hear no excuses. So tonight was a good opportunity to kind of prepare for some of those moments. Things aren’t going your way, stay locked in and it may change at any given point.”

Brown called it an honor and a blessing to be on a 60-win team, but he knows every team will be 0-0 once the postseason starts. 

“It’s a lot of hard work that went into that,” Brown said. “Especially after coming up short last season, responding and coming back and not skipping any steps. So I think we’re on track, 60 wins, but when the playoffs start it’s back to square one.”

The Celtics drafted Brown with the third overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft out of California. Brown has career averages of 18.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.4 blocks. He has made three All-Star teams and one All-NBA team.