Recap: Jaylen Brown gets our attention, as short-handed Celtics fight hard but fall to Cavs

No Horford, no Crowder, still no Olynyk…and no win in Cleveland.

Boston fell to the Cavs on Thursday, 128-122, and yet fans have to be encouraged. Although the Celtics were depleted and trailed for almost the entire game, they fought hard for all 48 minutes on the second night of a back-to-back. Even better, we got our first good look at the emerging talent of Jaylen Brown.

Jaylen got his first NBA start head-to-head versus none other than LeBron James. With Crowder out, Brad Stevens called on Brown in order to keep Marcus Smart with the second unit, and the rookie wowed everyone with several highlight-reel plays. There was none better than this drive and jam over James himself:

Jaylen showing why he got his 1st NBA start https://t.co/RpWwQbf0Ru

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) November 4, 2016

Brown scored 19 points while shooting 8-16 (with 3-6 on threes) and added three steals. He was also a team-high +15. Isaiah Thomas overcame a sluggish first half to finish with 30 points (including 14-14 at the free-throw line) and six assists (although he was 0-6 from the arc). Avery Bradley had a tremendous all-around game with 26 points on 11-20 shooting, plus 10 rebounds. Smart added 14 points and made half of his six three-point attempts.

However, the short-handed Celtics couldn’t match the talent of the defending champs, and especially couldn’t stop Cleveland’s high-powered offense. James scored 30 with 12 assists, while Kevin Love had 26 points and Kyrie Irving dropped 23. Six Cavs scored in double-figures. Cleveland also was 32 of 37 at the free-throw line, a big advantage over Boston’s 19 of 22.

Early action was highlighted by Brown hitting his first shot, a three-pointer; Tyler Zeller’s back door pass to Bradley, who finished with a twisting reverse layup; and Bradley returning the favor on a pick-and-roll for a Zeller bunny. Boston also had a 6-0 run that forced Cleveland to call timeout after just four minutes.

The Celts hung in there until Channing Frye’s three-pointer broke a 19-all tie, and the Cavs outscored the Cs 19-6 over the final four minutes. Cleveland led, 36-25, at the end of one, thanks to shooting 12-25 with six triples.

Stevens went small out of necessity to start the second quarter, using Jonas Jerebko, Jordan Mickey, Terry Rozier, Gerald Green and Smart. Gerald provided a boost with six points in five minutes, but Irving was hitting everything from long-distance to keep the Cavs firmly in control. Then Tristan Thompson took over, blocking IT’s layup, scoring a putback, and demolishing Zeller on a driving power slam. The Cleveland lead got as high as 18, and at halftime the margin was 68-51.

Irving and Thompson combined for 27 points in the first half. Cleveland had a 14-0 advantage in fast break points and won the rebound battle at 26-17. The biggest difference, though, was the Cavs’ outside shooting. They hit 11-18 from the arc in the half, while the Celts could manage only 4-16.

LeBron scored Cleveland’s first 12 points of the third quarter. The Celtics picked up their shooting as Isaiah came alive, but LeBron simply decided to dominate, and no one had a prayer of stopping him as he scored 20 points in the period. The Cavs maintained their 17-point lead at 100-83 going to the fourth quarter.

The fourth could’ve become extended garbage time, except Bradley got hot from outside to lead the scrappy Celtics on a 14-4 run that cut the deficit to seven. Then Jaylen stepped up, draining a late-shot-clock three, snatching a ridiculous one-handed offensive rebound over everyone, and hitting yet another triple as Boston stayed within a half-dozen. The Cs got as close as five with five minutes to play, but the Cavs held them at arm’s length until Boston ran out of time.

The Green:

Celtics had a four-point play in the fourth when Rozier drained a three as Amir was fouled off the ball. Johnson hit the free throw.

Pound for pound, Smart is as strong as James. LeBron tried to overpower Marcus on the block and simply could not.

Fans get on Zeller because, face it, he’s not Horford, but Tyler fought hard on the boards all night and posted 11 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

The Gross:

The Celts were embarrassed in the third when they committed a turnover, then stood watching while Irving and James sprinted to a two-on-none breakout. Kyrie threw the ball off the glass for LeBron to catch and slam.

For the second straight week, the Celts were televised nationally on TNT. The pro: It reflected Boston’s position as one of the league’s highly-rated teams. The con: Playing on Thursday has resulted in two back-to-back situations, especially difficult with the injuries tonight.

How short-handed were the Celtics? Mickey played a couple of minutes in the first quarter. Has that ever happened?

The Greenlights:

Avery Bradley gets fancy with the reverse layup on @NBAonTNT! #NBARapidReplay https://t.co/isZP4dbal7

— NBA (@NBA) November 4, 2016

AB drops a dime to Tyler Zeller who throws down an uncontested slam! pic.twitter.com/AO5cOxJtIC

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) November 4, 2016

Jaylen Brown straight up jumping over Kevin Love and snagging a one-handed board. pic.twitter.com/qotfftJ6IE

— Marc D’Amico (@Marc_DAmico) November 4, 2016

The Grid:

• FG%: Celtics 48.4% (46/95), Cavaliers 48.2% (41/85)
• 3pt FG%: Celtics 34.4% (11/32), Cavaliers 41.2 (14/34)
• Points in the Paint: Celtics 56 (28/46), Cavaliers 38 (19/32)
• 2nd Chance Points: Celtics 20 (9/13), Cavaliers 11 (3/9)
• Fast Break Points: Celtics 6 (1/6), Cavaliers 23 (8/10)
• Biggest Lead: Celtics 3, Cavaliers 20

Box Score