Jaylen Brown to miss third straight game; Joe Mazzulla is not worried

Jaylen Brown to miss third straight game; Joe Mazzulla is not worried

Celtics

“Not concerned and I don’t think he is either.”

Jaylen Brown is expected to miss his third straight game for Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

The Celtics will face Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday without one of their top stars.

For the third straight game, Jaylen Brown will be out for Boston with a left hip flexor issue.

Brown said. The Boston Globe Gary Washburn this weekend received an MRI of his left hip flexor during training camp. Hip pain continues to bother him since camp, with Brown telling Washburn he plans to get a second MRI after Friday’s win over the Charlotte Hornets.

“I didn’t feel like my legs were underneath me, facing that hip flexor,” Brown told Washburn. “It’s more [affecting] my explosion and my brilliance. And then, mentally, I try to understand that too. Thinking about it is a bit of a mess, but everything will be fine.

Despite the obvious concern that comes with one of the team’s biggest stars missing three straight games, head coach Joe Mazzulla didn’t sound the alarm Tuesday during his weekly radio call with “Zolak and Bertrand” from 98.5 The Sports Hub.

“Not concerned,” Mazzulla said on The Sports Hub. “It’s day to day. It’s a tension. He works very hard every day on his treatment and is just trying to get back into it. I’m not worried, and I don’t think he is either.

The Celtics took care of business in the two games Brown has already missed, beating the Hornets in the second leg of a back-to-back Saturday before facing the Hawks on Monday, 123-93.

Still, Brown’s absence provides a tough break for the Celtics with the 6-1 Warriors coming to town. Brown is averaging 25.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game in his six appearances this season.

The Celtics should be bolstered on Wednesday with Jayson Tatum set for a rematch against Kerr and the Warriors.

While Tatum (30.0 points, 7.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists) is already playing at an MVP level out of the gate this season, he’ll have plenty of motivation to take on Kerr — especially after Warriors head coach benched Tatum twice during the 2024 Summer Olympics.

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Conor Ryan is a writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.