For the third time this season, Celtics forward Jaylen Brown was named the NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week.
In four games between March 31-April 5, Brown averaged 31.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 1.3 steals. The Celtics went 3-1 during that stretch to open up a three-game lead over the Knicks for the second seed in the Eastern Conference with four games left in the regular season.
Brown had 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists in last Monday’s loss to the Hawks. He followed that up with 20 of the Celtics’ team-record 53 first-quarter points in a 147-129 rout of the Heat, finishing with 43 on 17-for-29 shooting. Brown also tossed in 26 points in double-digit wins over the Bucks and Raptors.
He also became the eighth Celtic to record 3,000 defensive rebounds — the NBA started differentiating offensive and defensive rebounds in 1973 — in Sunday’s win over Toronto, joining Robert Parish, Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, Dave Cowens, Kevin McHale, Jayson Tatum, and Antoine Walker.
It is the seventh weekly honor of Brown’s career. He was also recognized for the weeks of Dec. 1-7 and Dec. 22-28. In 69 games this season, Brown has averaged 28.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 5.2 assists — all of which are career highs.