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Jaylen Brown Awaiting Punishment Decision After Raptors Game

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Chris Phelps | Last updated Jan 9, 2026 10:43 PM ET

Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics saw their four-game winning streak end on Wednesday, falling to the Nikola Jokic-less Denver Nuggets. But on Friday night, the Celtics bounced back, taking down RJ Barrett and the Toronto Raptors 125-117, jumping to 24-13 on the 2025-26 NBA season.

Brown continued his impressive season as Boston's No. 1 option, with Jayson Tatum still out due to an Achilles tear he suffered in last year's playoffs. Against Toronto, Brown tallied 25 points on 6-of-15 shooting, eight rebounds and seven assists. But it was point guard Payton Pritchard who led the Celtics in scoring with 27 points.

Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) dunks against Toronto Raptors forward Sandro Mamukelashvili (54)David Butler II-Imagn Images

With 5:35 remaining in the fourth quarter, Brown caught a pass from Pritchard at the top of the arc and immediately drove to the basket, getting past Raptors guard Alijah Martin. He then met Sandro Mamukelashvili at the rim and finished with a posterizing dunk over the Toronto forward.

Immediately after the highlight play, Brown appeared to begin a throat-slash gesture before stopping himself. The gesture could still result in a fine, as play-by-play commentator Drew Carter noted during the broadcast, saying, “Let’s hope he doesn’t get fined for that.”

This would not be the first time Brown has been fined for a throat-slash gesture. He was previously fined $25,000 for the same offense in the 2024-25 NBA season after a December win over the Detroit Pistons. NBA head of basketball operations Joe Dumars said the fine was issued because of Brown’s “inappropriate gesture.”

Jaylen Brown poster (+ his gravedigger celebration) pic.twitter.com/Y26ZB5VZrB
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzell) January 10, 2026

Brown and the Celtics will now look ahead to their next opponent, facing Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in the second game of a back-to-back on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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