Celtics Jaylen Brown calls slippery court vs. Raptors for In-Season Tournament unacceptable -

Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown called the court for Friday’s In-Season Tournament game against the Toronto Raptors “unacceptable.”

Brown said postgame he slipped and may have strained his groin due to the court being slippery all game.

“I think as players we’re all here for the In-Season Tournament because it’s going to generate revenue, excitement, competition, but we’ve got to make sure the floor is safe to play on,” Brown said. “We can’t put our players out there and risk their health.”

Brown said the In-Season Tournament court he played on in Boston “was fine.” But he did say he heard other players around the league “mention they were slipping around,” during In-Season Tournament games.

“I think they need to make sure that’s the emphasis before somebody gets seriously hurt,” Brown said.

"It was slippery," says Precious Achiuwa. https://t.co/om3CTV2yLX

— (((Eric Koreen))) (@ekoreen) November 18, 2023

Brown wasn’t the only player to comment on the slippery court Friday. Raptors forward Precious Achiuwa agreed with Brown, calling the court “slippery.” Brown’s teammate, Kristaps Porziņģis, said the courts “need to be reviewed.”

The Celtics beat the Raptors 108-105 to improve to 10-2 on the season.

Evaluating Brown’s comments

Brown sounded furious after hurting himself while slipping on the court during the fourth quarter. He wasn’t the only Celtics player to voice his opinion about the court. In the locker room, a couple of other players held a discussion echoing some of Brown’s concerns. Porziņģis, who did a joint press conference with Brown, was asked about the issue after hearing his teammate’s comment. Porzingis said he could also feel the slickness of the new court.

The new, In-Season Tournament courts do make the tournament games stand out. But, if the court actually was more slippery than usual, this isn’t the first time one of the new courts has had a problem. — Jay King, Celtics beat writer

Precious Achiuwa weighs in on court

Achiuwa missed most of preseason and five regular-season games this year because of a groin injury. He missed 24 games last year with a similar ailment. More than most, he notices courts that aren’t up to standard.

“It was slippery,” Achiuwa said when told of Brown’s post-game comment. “I fell myself a few times. A couple of times I ended up on the floor. I slipped a few times.

“I’m extra cautious. Ending up on the floor is kind of like, OK, I’m checking myself. I’m trying to make sure everything is intact. At the end of the day, I just want to hoop.”

There have been complaints about some of the other In-Season Tournament courts. Certainly, this is a bad look for the league. — Eric Koreen, Raptors beat writer

Required reading

(Photo: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)

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