Jaylen Brown Ankle Injury Unlikely to Be Long-Term Issue, Celtics' Brad Stevens Says

The Boston Celtics are optimistic Jaylen Brown's ankle injury won't be a significant problem. 

Appearing on Toucher and Rich on 98.5 The Sports Hub (h/t Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston), Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said Brown is "doing better than I originally thought when I saw him go down" and "it doesn't look like a long-term thing."

Stevens did note Brown is going to be "constantly reevaluated" over the next few days. 

Brown went down in the first quarter of Tuesday's 107-98 victory over the Atlanta Hawks. He rolled his ankle on a drive to the basket and limped off the court under his own power. 

Head coach Ime Udoka told reporters after the game that Brown had "some swelling and soreness," but there was one point when the 2021 All-Star thought he could go back in. 

"He tried to give it a go in the back and wanted to come back out and play, [but] just decided big picture, where we're at in the season and be smart. So we'll know more over the next few days," Udoka said. 

The Celtics have already ruled Brown out for Thursday's game against the Memphis Grizzlies with a sprained right ankle. 

This marks the second notable injury for Brown this season. He suffered a hamstring injury during a Nov. 4 game against the Miami Heat. The 25-year-old missed eight straight games before returning on Nov. 22. 

The Celtics announced prior to a Dec. 3 game against the Utah Jazz that Brown wouldn't play because of injury management related to his hamstring. He wound up missing five straight games. 

Thursday will mark Brown's first missed game since Dec. 10. The six-year veteran is having a fantastic season for a surging Celtics team. He is averaging 23.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game with a 46.3 field-goal percentage in 50 starts. 

Derrick White, who was acquired from the San Antonio Spurs on Feb. 10, will likely move into the starting lineup until Brown is able to return. White is averaging 11.8 points, 3.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds in eight appearances for the Celtics. 

Boston has won 14 of its last 17 games and is currently sixth in the Eastern Conference standings with a 37-27 overall record. 

The Celtics play four of their next five games at home before starting a four-game Western Conference road trip on March 16 against the Golden State Warriors.