BOSTON (AP) 鈥� For almost the entirety of their time together in Boston, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have been linked.
They were drafted by the Celtics third overall in back-to-back years.
They possess similar skillsets 鈥� two explosive and skilled wing players with an ability to score from nearly every spot on the court.
And they both have been central to the success of a Celtics team that has reached the NBA Finals for the second time in three seasons. It helped Brown earn the NBA鈥檚 first $300 million contract last summer. And, Tatum is expected to get one this offseason.
The team has branded the All-Stars as 鈥淭he Jays鈥� in a marketing campaign shown during games that pitted them against one another in mini competitions.
It has created natural comparisons between them along the way, fostering an atmosphere in which fans and sports pundits alike have tried to parse out which one of them is better, whose spot is most untouchable on the roster and which of them is more pivotal to the Celtics' success as they prepare to lead the team to the franchise鈥檚 18th NBA title.
It reached a new level last week during a segment on ESPN鈥檚 鈥淕et Up鈥� in which panelists debated whether the 26-year-old Tatum expressed excitement or disappointment while watching the 27-year-old Brown garner Eastern Conference finals MVP honors.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 unfair to both of them,鈥� Celtics coach said of what he viewed as an attempt to manufacture friction between the two stars.
But even as Tatum and Brown have distinguished themselves as the most important players on Boston鈥檚 roster and the keys to the Celtics鈥� fate in their NBA Finals , Mazzulla has hope that people will start viewing them differently.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e, like, two completely different people. They鈥檙e two completely different players,鈥� Mazzulla said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e great teammates, they love each other and they go about winning and they go about their process in a different way. Why they have to always be lumped together I think is unfair.鈥�
Tatum and Brown, along with Al Horford, are the only returning starters from the 2021-22 team that lost to the Golden State Warriors in six games in the Finals after holding a 2-1 series lead.
While Horford has taken on mostly a reserve role this season, backing up 7-footer Kristaps Porzingis, Tatum and Brown have taken their play up a notch.
Tatum鈥檚 scoring numbers have remained steady from the regular season (26.9 per game) into the playoffs (26.0), while his rebounding has increased from 8.1 to 10.4 per game in the postseason. Brown, too, has seen jumps in those categories, going from 23.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game to 25.0 points and 6.1 rebounds in the playoffs.
Tatum believes they鈥檝e both used lessons from the 2022 NBA Finals鈥� loss, as well as last year鈥檚 conference finals loss to Miami, to grow into players more equipped to accomplish their championship goal this time around.
鈥淥bviously, we鈥檝e been there before, we came up short,鈥� Tatum said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 always get a second chance, so really just looking at it as a second chance and trying to simplify things as much as we can.鈥�
And being each other's biggest cheerleaders, too.
After Brown made a game-tying 3-pointer late in with Indiana to send the game to overtime in an eventual Celtics' victory, the highest praise came from Tatum.
鈥淏ig time players make big time plays,鈥� Tatum said of Brown.
For Brown, this season has been about focusing on the expectations he has for himself and not worrying about others' perception of him.
Initially, when he was asked about not being included on either the All-NBA or All-Defensive teams, he shrugged it off, saying his attention was focused on getting back to the NBA Finals.
After he was named conference finals MVP, he acknowledged it did offer at least some motivation, particularly on the defensive side of the ball which he said he put most of his work into this past offseason.
鈥淎s time has gone by and I got to this point, I stopped caring,鈥� Brown said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 care who sees what, as long as my city knows my value, my team knows my value, my family 鈥� that鈥檚 all I really care about.鈥�
Mazzulla believes the reason the relationship between Brown and Tatum is so often talked about is rooted in outside disbelief that their dynamic doesn鈥檛 breed any rivalry between them.
鈥淎t the end of the day, like, those two guys, their relationship is their relationship,鈥� Mazzulla said. 鈥淭hey love each other. They push each other every single day in practice. They communicate with each other, but they go about it differently. And, I think they both get it unfair being compared to each other. They鈥檙e different. And we see other duos around the league don鈥檛 have to go through that. ... It鈥檚 because they鈥檝e been so successful their entire careers, they鈥檝e been able to for so long stay in success at a high level.鈥�
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Kyle Hightower, The Associated Press
