Knicks Must Face Celtics' Final Boss Jaylen Brown

The New York Knicks are fortunate not to have to face Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum for the rest of the series after he tore his Achilles in Game 4, but that just means another monster has been awakened.

The Celtics won the NBA Finals last season, and it was Jaylen Brown — not Tatum — who was named MVP. The former No. 3 overall pick has played second fiddle to Tatum throughout their tenures together in Boston, but Brown is no pushover, and the Knicks found that out in Game 5.

Brown's 26 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds delivered the superstar performance necessary to win an elimination game in the playoffs.

"With Tatum gone, Brown had to step up. But he has looked like a shell of himself all series. Could he really transform into, well, Brown? There was no doubt by the end of the third quarter. Brown was not his usual explosive self, which may never be a thing for the rest of this still interminable playoff run. But he showed he can manage a game from the ground, executing every facet of the game plan to perfection after halftime," The Athletic's Jared Weiss wrote.

"The Celtics had a chance to get into the bonus early, so Brown kept driving at Towns and Brunson until the Celtics could just live at the line. He even got Brunson to foul out early in the fourth quarter, allowing the Celtics to hold onto a big lead."

Brown is a different player with Tatum not on the floor, and though he hasn't had a ton of time as the No. 1 option, he proved in Game 5 that he is perfectly capable. He also has a championship-level supporting cast on his side, and that makes the Knicks job anything but easy in hopes of closing out the series.