BOSTON — Jaylen Brown said he’s in his athletic prime. Plus he thinks the dunk contest will be fun. Also, an All-Star hasn’t actually been a part of the dunk contest since 2017. It’s all those reasons why Brown is one of four participants to take part of the festivities at All-Star weekend in Indianapolis. He’ll compete against the Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr., the Knicks’ Obi Toppin and reigning champ Mac McClung.
Brown was mum on what his plan will be for the showcase event. That’s often the case since players don’t want to spoil part of the surprise. But he did hint that fellow All-Star and C’s teammate Jayson Tatum could be part of his plan as a prop.
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“I may or may not use props,” Brown said after the Celtics beat the Wizards. “I got about six in the chamber or whatever. We’ll see which ones I end up going with, but definitely be on the look for JT to make an appearance on it. Definitely want to use the All-Star weekend, the fun activities to be able to build with your teammates and share some of that. If JT is available, for sure it will be fun.”
Tatum already said he’s down to be part of the dunk contest if Brown wants to get his help. Considering Tatum is listed at 6-foot-8, while he’s no 7-footer, jumping over an All-Star starter wouldn’t hurt Brown’s chances to win it all. Brown’s inclusion itself has drawn some praise as stars haven’t opted to be part of the dunk contest in several years.
Regardless, the dunk contest should be fun as Brown gets to go up against MacClung, who turned some heads last season. Part of the difficulty with the dunk contest is how it’s hard to come up with an original dunk idea, and that’s why props have become more common. Former C’s big man Blake Griffin jumped over a car back in 2011, for example, back in his Clippers days. But Brown seems confident he’ll have something at least fun for the fans.
“Everything has been done,” Brown said. “I think just my approach is just to have fun with it and put my own little style, my own little swag on things. Everything has been done, but I feel like I bring a uniqueness. So I plan on putting my own style and bringing my own swag to it and just go from there.”
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