The Boston Celtics have not yet lived up to expectations during the 2020-21 season. At 23-25, they are middle-of-the-pack in the crowded Eastern Conference and nothing has come easy for them.
Part of that comes as Jaylen Brown, 24, and Jayson Tatum, 23, have stepped into bigger leadership roles with the team early in their careers. They are the team's two best players and have had to shoulder the scoring burden most nights this year and deal with countless different lineup combinations as a result of injuries and trades.
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Brown and Tatum haven't been able to carry the Celtics consistently yet, but nonetheless, Celtics coach Brad Stevens remains impressed with the efforts they've put forth as leaders this year.
"I think the most important thing that young players can do when talking about leading is they can lead by example with their play on both ends, and they can be accountable. And I think, for the most part, they deserve high marks in those areas, and especially accountability." Stevens said before Friday night's game between the Rockets and the Celtics, per Celtics.com's Taylor Snow.
"Those guys don’t skirt from the responsibility, they don’t point fingers at other people, and they have been really receptive to growth, and they deserve credit for that."
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Beyond that, Stevens also spoke of how Brown and Tatum are doing about as well as they can as they navigate these difficulties, especially considering their respective ages. The coach also explained that this season's struggles could help Brown and Tatum down the road in future years with the C's.
Stevens definitely has a point about how this adversity will help Tatum and Brown down the line, and certainly, they are navigating the Celtics' growing pains as best as they can.
But that won't bring much comfort to Celtics fans right now. They want to see the two young stars break the C's out of the season-long slump that they've been in before anointing them as great leaders.
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That will start by getting back on track Friday night against the Houston Rockets.