Joe Mazzulla reveals schedule for Jaylen Brown's return

Three-time Boston Celtics All-Star small forward Jaylen Brown has missed the club's last three games with a hip strain.

Third-year Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla offered new insight into the recovery timeline for the 2024 Finals MVP in his speech before Boston's game against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.

According to ESPN's Tim Bontemps, Mazzulla suggested that Brown should think about the future.

In his first six healthy contests, the 6-foot-6 UC Berkeley product averaged 25.7 points on .400/.267/.809 shooting splits, 7.2 boards, 3.8 dimes, 1.5 steals and 0.5 blocks per night.

Without Brown (and starting center Kristaps Porzingis, who will be on the bench for at least the first few months of the 2024-25 regular season), Boston went 2-0. The reigning champions have won their last two fights by an average of 20 points. This 7-1 Celtics squad is a strong, well-oiled machine.

With Brown sidelined, Boston has opted to deploy a Twin Towers big-man tandem, using reserve center Neemias Queta on the deep bench alongside sixth man Al Horford in the frontcourt, while the 6-foot-10 All-NBA superstar Jayson Tatum moves to Browns small forward.

Boston has emerged as the class of the Eastern Conference for the second year in a row, and while the team lacks the Cleveland Cavaliers' unblemished 8-0 record (as of this writing), the Celtics and Cleveland are the only two teams in the East with records over .500.

Tatum played better than ever. The 26-year-old is averaging 30.0 points on .481/.355/.779 shooting splits along with 7.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.5 blocks per night in his eight games with Boston. Brown has also stepped up his game. If his hip doesn't pose a long-term health obstacle, it's likely the two-way star could win his second All-NBA award as well as his fourth-ever All-Star appearance.

Tatum has probably already done enough to make it into the Hall of Fame if it all ended today. Brown may be a borderline case, as he is the second-best player on a title team (albeit the one who was honored as Finals MVP), but considering he is only 28 years old, it is likely that he will continue to receive such accolades I had to help get to Springfield easily and one day I saw his No. 7 jersey hanging in the rafters of TD Garden, presumably right next to Tatum's.

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