Jaylen Brown to miss Friday’s Hawks game with scary-sounding injury
Brown is out for Friday’s game against Atlanta, and the injury news might give fans a bad feeling.
Jaylen Brown is out for Friday night's Celtics game against the Atlanta Hawks, and while the injury doesn't seem to be a major thing just yet, it's an ominous sign.
Brown was listed as out with "Left Achilles Tendinitis" on the Celtics' official injury report Friday morning, after Thursday's report described his issue as "Left Calf Tightness." Brown was previously listed as questionable before being downgraded for Friday.
The injury halts Brown in the middle of his latest hot streak. Brown has averaged 32.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 5.8 assists over his last five games. He just played his 65th game, giving him the minimum amount required for MVP and All-NBA consideration. He will almost certainly be named somewhere among the latter, as he sits fifth in the NBA with 28.6 points per game.
Additionally, big man Nikola Vucevic remains out as he recovers from a fractured right ring finger. Derrick White (right knee contusion) and Neemias Queta (right thumb sprain), meanwhile, are available after being questionable on Thursday.
Tendinitis certainly isn't remotely as serious as a tear, especially in the Achilles tendon, which Celtics fans learned all about after Jayson Tatum had to miss the majority of the 2025-26 regular season due to a rupture of his own. The hope for the C's is that Brown can get his Achilles right with the classic RICE method (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) and return to the court relatively quickly, and that this injury doesn't linger.
Even if the tendinitis gets better, this could potentially be a precursor to a full tear. So, C's fans will now be holding their breath every time Brown gets the ball, whenever he gets back.
The Celtics will look to extend their lead over the idle New York Knicks for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference to a full game. Atlanta enters Friday's game riding a three-game win streak, including a narrow overtime win over the Pistons on Wednesday, and sitting in the 5-seed. This could be a potential future playoff opponent, so it'll be interesting to see how the C's handle this one without Brown.
