Jaylen Brown May Miss Game Vs. Bucks With Foot Injury, Doesn't Think It's A Long-Term Issue
BOSTON (CBS) -- Jaylen Brown has played his best basketball of the young season over the last two games, but the Celtics guard may have to sit out Thursday night's prime-time clash with the Milwaukee Bucks with a lingering foot issue.
Brown said he's been dealing with pain in the top of his foot for a little over a week now, but it has been manageable up to this point. It's a new kind of a pain that he hasn't felt before, and he'll be checked out by an orthopedic doctor before a decision is made about playing Thursday night. He's feeling better than he did after Tuesday night's win over the Pistons, but the pain is still a cause for concern.
"It's pain across the foot, so any time I put pressure down or when I take off or run, I feel pain shoot around the foot," said Brown. "If it was a playoff game, I'd definitely be trying to play through it, but the concern is we have an 82-game season. So they are kind of reeling me back, but we'll see how it goes."
Brown said the issue is plantar fasciitis, which he has dealt with in the past.
"I don't think it's anything that's going to keep me out long-term," he said confidently. " I just have to manage it properly, keep it from flaring up. I definitely want to be on the floor as much as possible and continue to stay in rhythm. It's going to be a challenge all year to stay in rhythm. Hopefully I'll be able to feel a lot better tonight, closer to 100 percent."
After a sluggish start to the new season, Brown has played well in Boston's last two games, both victories over the Detroit Pistons. He dropped a season-high 19 points in the C's win in Detroit on Saturday night and followed that up with a 14-point performance Tuesday in Boston. He didn't show many signs of his bothersome foot that evening, attacking the basket regularly over his 32 minutes on the floor.
The Celtics will need all hands on deck in their first matchup against the Bucks, who come to Boston 7-0 on the season. Brown was a monster against Milwaukee in the first round of the playoffs last year, averaging 17.9 points over the seven-game series (he averaged 20.5 points over the first six games before leaving Game 7 after 16 minutes with a hamstring injury). He hit the 30-point mark twice, shooting 47 percent as the Celtics eliminated the Bucks in seven games.
This season, Brown is averaging 10.9 points off 36 percent shooting from the floor (a career-low for Brown) over Boston's first seven games.
