Why Jaylen Brown is studying Paul Pierce’s game as he plays through his knee injury

As the playoffs approach, Brown hopes to pick up a thing or two from Pierce's game.

Jaylen Brown scored 31 points in the Celtics' win over the Suns on Friday. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

April 5, 2025

3 minutes to read

After scoring 31 points in the Celtics’ win against the Suns Friday night, Jaylen Brown stopped to chat with Paul Pierce.

The Celtics legend was at TD Garden watching the game with his daughter Prianna and legendary Red Sox slugger David Ortiz. Seeing Pierce at the game was a coincidence, Brown said, because he has been studying Pierce’s game recently.

Brown has been dealing with knee soreness, which has made it tougher to rely on just his athleticism to make plays. He’s been experimenting with a slower, more deliberate play style as he navigates the injury that forced him to be on a minutes restriction.

Some of the things that Pierce excelled at, such as putting himself in proper position to get good looks and finding ways to score without necessarily having to blow by defenders are things that Brown wants to emulate as the postseason approaches.

“It’s funny because he was at the game today. Before the game, I was watching some Paul Pierce footage,” Brown said. “Getting to your spots, you know, playing at a certain pace. Today I felt like I didn’t have my normal burst but I was still able to be effective, so I think that’s good.

“But, as we continue to move forward, I’m hoping to feel better and better. But, there’s no guarantee that rest or anything like that will make this thing better so I’m kind of figuring it out and going through it and getting ready for the playoffs.”

Brown has played in 61 games. With five games remaining, he’ll have to play in at least four to be eligible for NBA postseason awards. The games will also serve as opportunities for Brown to feel things out against live competition before the playoffs start later this month.

“I haven’t felt my best over the last couple of days, the last couple of weeks,” Brown said. “But you’ve kind of got to just roll with the punches I guess. It is what it is. It sucks.

“I wish I could share more details, but whatever my team needs, whatever I can do, whatever I’ve got, I’ll give. So, I’m looking forward to taking it one day at a time and hoping that some things will improve over these next two weeks or so.”

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said that communication is key as Brown attempts to play through the soreness. Brown has been handling the situation well, the coach said.

“I have a responsibility to make the game easy for him regardless of what the situation is,” Mazzulla said. “To me, it’s always about trust. There’s no one that understands his body, there’s no one that prepares mentally, physically the way that he does. He’s constantly taking in information on the environment and what he needs to do.”

Brown said he takes pride in being able to produce while he battles through the injury.

“You normally seeing people complaining about when people are choosing not to play,” Brown said. “I’ve never experienced the other way around where I’m playing and people are encouraging me not to.”

“I think pain is definitely a physical thing but it is also a mental thing. Joe has allowed me, even though my team can see visibly that I may be in a bit of pain, that they trust me that I can go out there and control my body and make plays and mentally push through it. I think that’s something I’m going to have in my back pocket.”

Brown said he’s not sure how long the minutes restriction will last. He appreciates Mazzulla for allowing him to experiment.

“I still want him to hold me to the same standard,” Brown said. “But I appreciate Joe for the communication and stuff like that. It’s good to have that now rather than trying to figure it out once everything is on the line.”