On Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025, the Detroit Pistons extended their winning streak to eight games with a shocking and decisive 117-97 victory over the Boston Celtics at Little Caesars Arena, marking their longest winning streak since 2008. Cade Cunningham was dynamic, Ausar Thompson was flying around, and Malik Beasley was firing on all cylinders. To put it simply, things couldn’t have gone better for the Pistons.
On the Boston side of things, it’s a much different story. Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 27 points, Payton Pritchard had 18 off the bench, and both Kristaps Porziņģis and Al Horford re-entered the lineup after a night off. Yet, all of that production resulted in a 20-point loss. Why? Well, no one loss can be blamed solely on one player, but it’s never going to be easy to win games when you’re without the reigning NBA Finals MVP, Jaylen Brown.
Joe Mazzulla’s Post-Game Comments Regarding Jaylen Brown
After sustaining a left thigh contusion during a hard-fought victory over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday, Feb. 25, Brown was sidelined for the subsequent game against Detroit. On the surface, Brown’s injury appeared at the time to be relatively insubstantial, but head coach Joe Mazzulla’s latest comments have Celtics fans thinking otherwise.
Following Boston’s loss to Detroit, Mazzulla commented on Brown’s injury, stating, “He was pretty banged up. He’s feeling a little bit better. He was pretty banged up, though, from last night. So, just doing what’s best for him.”
Later in the interview, Mazzulla added, “He puts his body through a lot and plays regardless. Sometimes, you’ve got to save the guys from themselves.”
The NBA’s grueling schedule demands a lot from players, and many times, they push their bodies to the absolute brink. Even though having Brown in the lineup may or may not have resulted in a Boston win, this is a team looking to stack up wins in May and June, not February.
Should Celtics Fans Be Concerned?
While any injury to a key player like Brown can cause unease among the Celtics faithful, Mazzulla’s proactive approach is certainly reassuring. The truth is that sometimes players don’t know what’s best for them, and naturally, as competitors, they want to be out there playing for their guys whenever they can, particularly when it’s against a competitive team like Detroit, who Boston could very well see again in the postseason.
Even though the injury itself is relatively minor, resting Brown removes any possibility of it escalating into something more severe. Generally, thigh contusions aren’t anything to be overly concerned about. Even Brown himself stated how “it’s all mental” when speaking with the Boston Globe.
“One of my favorite players, one of the reasons why I picked up a ball, Kobe Bryant, and I listen to him talk about playing through injuries and how to take your mind to different places.
“Sometimes getting injured in the regular season is a good thing because it teaches you how to mentally play the game or adjust. In the postseason, if you’re injured, there’s no excuse. People don’t care. They don’t want to hear that. It’s either you win or you lose.”
The rigors of back-to-back games can exacerbate injuries tremendously if not managed carefully. If anything, fans should feel extremely excited about the fact that they have a coach in Mazzulla and a superstar in Brown who both recognize the importance of that.
