NBA Notes: Celtics, Jaylen Brown, Nets, Michael Porter Jr, Heat

Celtics

Jaylen Brown scored 34 points Monday against Detroit, but the box score didn’t tell the whole story.

Brown missed seven free throws in a seven-point loss and took full responsibility afterward, per Jay King of The Athletic.

“I’ve got to do better to get my team over the hump,” Brown said. “Especially in the fourth quarter, just some mindset plays. … Too many missed free throws. Just mentality-wise, mindset-wise, I needed to be more for my team.”

Teammate Derrick White pushed back on that idea.

White said Brown was being too hard on himself and suggested that self-criticism is part of what makes him special. Brown finished with 30-plus and still felt he left too much on the table, something White said the locker room appreciates rather than blames.

Nets

Michael Porter Jr. keeps making his case, even if the stage isn’t ideal.

Porter is putting up career-best numbers and is averaging 25.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists. C.J. Holmes of the New York Daily News dug into the advanced numbers and laid out why Porter belongs in the All-Star conversation, even if playing for a rebuilding Nets team hurts his visibility.

Brooklyn is 6-3 when Porter scores 30 or more.

“Just look at what we look like when he’s on the court versus when he’s not,” center Nic Claxton said. “He does so much.”

Heat

Norman Powell showed up on the injury report with calf discomfort and then went out and played anyway.

That’s not new for him.

“I push my body to the limit,” Powell said, via Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, explaining that playing through pain has always been part of his approach.

Powell is averaging 24.4 points and is headed toward unrestricted free agency this summer if he doesn’t sign an extension. He’s also still chasing his first All-Star nod.

“It’s always been a goal of mine,” Powell said. “But a lot of that stuff is out of my control. My job is to go out there and play the best brand of basketball I can.”