I've been a regular basher of Jaylen's defensive positioning (and his screening), but Forsberg notes some interesting stuff about the kid:
The more encouraging sign if you're Stevens is that Brown has been excellent at the other end. Boston's defensive rating is 101.5 when Brown is on the floor, nearly three points lower than the team's season average. What's more, the NBA's defensive tracking data suggests that Brown is limiting opponents to 35.2 percent shooting overall, a whopping 8.4 percent below those players' season average. A teenager just a month ago, Brown's NBA-ready body has allowed him to get physical with more experienced players, and he has limited opponents to 47.4 percent shooting inside of 6 feet, or 21 percent lower than those players' season average.
Brown ranks in the 93rd percentile among all defenders while allowing just 0.716 points per play, according to Synergy Sports data. Narrow the field to all players who have defended at least 95 total plays and Brown ranks 9th in the NBA out of 268 qualifiers. It’s a small sample, but an encouraging one.
He closes out hard on shooters and commits few fouls defending guys on the move. What do you think? Could he be a legitimate elite defender if and when he fully susses defensive schemes?