Jaylen Brown comes off COVID list to score 46 points in opener

Being in isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 did not affect former Cal star Jaylen Brown in the Boston Celtics' season opener, as he scored 20 points in the first quarter on his way to a career-high 46 points Wednesday night.

Unfortunately for Boston it was not quite enough to give the Celtics a win as the Knicks won the game 138-134 in double overtime.

Brown tested positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 8, and on Tuesday he was listed as questionable for the opener.

He said before Wednesday's game that he had "some mild symptoms for the most part," including some breathing issues, but he used meditation to get through it.

"The most concerning was my breathing," Brown said, according to ESPN.com. "I had to really focus to get my breathing kind of back to normal."

The Celtics provided an inhaler for Brown if he needed it during Wednesday's game, but Brown said before the game that he felt pretty good.

"Just coming off being in quarantine and ramping the intensity level, there's obviously concerns, risk of injury and things like that," Brown said prior to the game, according to ESPN.com. "Some of the coaches are concerned it might be too soon, just because this is the NBA."

Brown showed no rust at the outset, scoring 20 points in the first quarter.  He also was part of a fourth-quarter Celtics rally that pushed the game into overtime.

New York led by 10 points with less than 11 minutes left, but a driving layup by Brown got the deficit down to three points with 1:09 left, and he nailed three-pointer with 6.1 seconds remaining that Boston within a point.

Two Julius Randle free throws made it a three-point game, before a three-point shot by Marcus Smart with one second left sent the game into overtime.

Brown did not score in the first overtime, but his three-point shot 18 seconds into the second extra period gave Boston a three-point lead and gave Brown his 46 points. But the Knicks forged ahead and led by four when Brown missed a three-point shot with 17.7 seconds left that would have put Boston within one point.

Brown finished 16-for-30 from the field, including 8-of-14 from three-point range. He also had nine rebounds and six assists, and the Celtics outscored New York by 16 points when he was on the floor,