Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown played the final stretch of the 2024–25 season and the playoffs with a partially torn right meniscus, according to a report by Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.
Brown’s injury was sustained late in the regular season, but he continued to play through pain without publicly disclosing the issue.
The All-Star wing appeared in 63 regular-season games, averaging 22.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game while shooting 46.3% from the field.
In the playoffs, Brown started all 11 games and posted similar numbers — 22.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per contest — while logging a team-high 36.5 minutes per night.
Despite entering the postseason as the defending NBA champions and the No. 2 seed in the East, Boston was eliminated in the second round by the New York Knicks in six games.
The Celtics had hoped to become the first back-to-back NBA champions since the 2017 and 2018 Golden State Warriors but fell short in the conference semifinals for the third time in four years.
Brown’s injury may explain his inconsistent stretches during the series, especially during key moments in the closeout Game 6 defeat at Madison Square Garden.
According to Shelburne, Brown will be further evaluated this week to determine whether surgery is necessary to repair the torn meniscus.
The 27-year-old did not miss any playoff games due to the knee injury, and the extent of his pain management was not made public until after Boston’s elimination.
Brown signed a five-year supermax extension with the Celtics in the 2023 offseason, and he remains a core part of the franchise’s long-term plans alongside Jayson Tatum.
Boston ended the regular season with a 61–21 record, trailing only the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference standings.
After dispatching the Orlando Magic in five games in the first round, the Celtics struggled to generate consistent offense against New York’s defensive pressure.
