Jaylen Brown Credits Salsa Dancing for Helping Score Historic 50 Points in Celtics Win

The Boston Celtics may owe a debt of gratitude to Jaylen Brown's dance instructor.

The four-time All-Star went off for 50 points in Saturday's 146-115 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. After the game, he explained how he sensed it would be a special night, and he cited in part some salsa lessons he had on Friday.

"I knew before the game," Brown said, per ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. "In warmups, I could just feel like every shot, the ball was coming off my hand super clean. My footwork felt great. I did salsa last night. Had some great salsa classes. So, I felt good as soon as I walked into the arena."

He also reacted on social media:

The veteran forward shot 18-of-26 from the field and added three rebounds and five assists to his stat line.

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Beyond his big offensive showing, Brown helped to hold Clippers star Kawhi Leonard to 22 points, below his season average (28.3). He relished matching up against the two-time NBA Finals MVP.

"I seek those challenges," Brown said. "I feel like it brings the most out of me. Obviously, Kawhi is one of the greats, so I wanted to start on him. And I just seek those matchups. I like when my back is against the wall. When people doubt, it fuels me. So, even though it'd be nice to get some respect ... keep it up. I definitely use it as fuel."

The Celtics have carried a chip on their shoulders all season.

A lot of people wrote them off, at least within the context of contending for a championship, after Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles tendon in May. Instead, Boston is third in the Eastern Conference at 22-12 and three games back of the first-place Detroit Pistons.

Brown has been the biggest reason for the team's performance. He's setting career highs in points (30.1) and assists (5.0), and he's second on the Celtics in rebounding (6.3).

Beyond the work he's putting in on the court, the salsa lessons underline how the 29-year-old is looking for whatever edge he can get to improve his game. The results speak for themselves.