As Jaylen Brown put together a career night in the Celtics’ blowout win over the Clippers, it was clear the shot-making was at a different level Saturday. Brown’s enjoyed a career season scoring the ball, but some of the shots he was making were special even for him.
As part of that huge offensive night, the Celtics made franchise history after their 146-115 win over the Clippers. The 146 points tied a season-high for the Celtics, but it was their efficiency that impressed. It was their best-ever night when it comes to offensive rating, according to radio play-by-play guru Sean Grande.
“I just wanted to win,” Brown said, via CLNS Media. “Last game of the road trip. Wanted to finish out strong. I believe I’m the best two-way player in the world. I just wanted to come out and show it.”
Brown tied a career-high with 50 points on incredible efficiency, shooting 18-for-26 from the field. The highlights will show a similar story where Brown made multiple tough looks from all over the court. The stellar game comes right after Brown expressed his frustration from being snubbed for East Player of the Month for December. Well, he put the league on notice.
But it wasn’t just Brown putting up points. Derrick White finished with 29 points, shooting 10-for-20 from the field. The Celtics shot 24-for-51 (47.1%) on 3-pointers as they feasted against a Clippers team that was riding a six-game win streak. Instead, the Celtics blew them out to finish 4-1 on their five-game road trip.
The Clippers actually stayed within striking distance of the Celtics despite the great offense. Los Angeles was making shots, too, to put some pressure on Boston. But the C’s pulled away in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Clippers 33-16. It was a game-long effort as the Celtics made shots all night.
The Celtics have now won seven of their last eight games. They’re one of the hottest teams in the NBA and keep finding ways to win. The C’s are now 22-12, and they’re just a half-game behind the Knicks for second place in the East.
“I was pretty confident in the summer that we would do a lot of good things,” Derrick White said. “Obviously, we had a lot of new faces and new roles. So you don’t know how quickly it’s going to happen. But I was pretty confident going into the season that the work we put in and a lot of guys do that work behind the scenes.