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Boston Celtics: 5 takeaways from 2017 NBA Summer League

By Josh Cornelissen

WALTHAM, MA - JUNE 30: Jayson Tatum, left, and Jaylen Brown chat during a drill during the Boston Celtics' summer league at the Celtics practice facility in Waltham, MA on Jun. 30, 2017. (Photo by John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
WALTHAM, MA - JUNE 30: Jayson Tatum, left, and Jaylen Brown chat during a drill during the Boston Celtics' summer league at the Celtics practice facility in Waltham, MA on Jun. 30, 2017. (Photo by John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 8: Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics handles the ball during the game against the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2017 Las Vegas Summer League on July 8, 2017 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 8: Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics handles the ball during the game against the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2017 Las Vegas Summer League on July 8, 2017 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /

2. Jaylen Brown was a man among boys

When former lottery picks return to NBA Summer League in their second season, the bar is set high. They need to show that they are a step above the players around them, clearly distinguished from rookies and fringe roster candidates.

Jaylen Brown did just that this summer, appearing in five games between Utah and Las Vegas. In Utah, Brown lead all players with 10.5 rebounds, showing strength and intensity in attacking the glass. For a team that has struggled to rebound in recent years, the more Brown can improve in that area, the better.

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In Vegas he turned the defensive intensity another notch, blocking more than a shot per game and attacking passing lanes. Brown was bigger, stronger and faster than the players he was with, and he and Jayson Tatum made a deadly pairing on the wing.

Last season Brown was a controversial pick when the Celtics took him third overall, but he silenced his doubters with a steady growth all season long, earning a spot in the rotation for a 53-win team as a rookie. While he isn’t a knock-down shooter, he is developing offensively and defensively.

This summer was simply another stop along that steady trek toward two-way stardom, and Brown is right on schedule. While many have questioned whether the Celtics were right to hang onto Brown instead of moving him for an established star, right now it looks like Boston has set itself up to contend now and for many years to come.

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