Brad Stevens Downplays Jaylen Brown, Marcus Morris Altercation: Not a 'Big Deal'

The Boston Celtics are not budging in their stance that the heated exchange between Jaylen Brown and Marcus Morris on Thursday is nothing to worry about.

One day after general manager Danny Ainge downplayed the incident, head coach Brad Stevens said it's "not that big of a deal," per NBC Sports Boston's Chris Forsberg:

Brown echoed similar sentiments by saying the bust-up was "nothing major," per Forsberg:

Meanwhile, Morris chalked it up to a passionate exchange, per Forsberg:

"We moved past it after the timeout," Morris said, per the Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach. "I know everybody wants to catch everything on camera, but catch the stuff that happens afterward, when we sat right beside each other and it was over."

During Thursday night's 115-99 loss to the Miami Heat, Brown and Morris had to be separated during a timeout in the second quarter. That mini-altercation included an exchange of words as well as a shove by Morris:

The loss snapped a four-game winning streak and dropped Boston to 25-16 on the season, good for fifth place in the Eastern Conference. 

This is the same team that came within one game of the NBA Finals a season ago despite not having All-Stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. The pressure of living up to championship expectations can get to a team over the course of an 82-game grind. Just ask the Golden State Warriors.

Ainge made it clear on Friday to the Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett that this sort of incident is common in the NBA: 

"I honestly didn't think anything of it. I like Marcus' and Jaylen's character and personalities and feistiness, and, like, I just think nothing of something like this.

"It's something where those things happen to best friends even. Heck, I remember those things happening to (Rajon) Rondo and Perk (Kendrick Perkins). You know, they're best buddies, but it's just the heat of the battle, and I didn't have a second thought about it."

And that's essentially the same stance Stevens, Brown and Morris all took on Saturday.

Boston had gone 7-2 in the nine games prior to the Miami loss. Irving told ESPN.com's Tim Bontemps on Wednesday that a clear-the-air meeting in December is the reason behind the team's recent success. But based on Thursday night's events, perhaps not all of their issues got ironed out.

The Celtics will have the opportunity to try to put the Brown-Morris encounter in the rearview mirror for good on Saturday when they return to the court for a tilt with the Orlando Magic.