3 things Jaylen Brown can improve on to make the Boston Celtics a title contender in the 2021-22 NBA season

#2 Jaylen Brown must be a better playmaker for the Boston Celtics

Jaylen Brown looks to pass out of tight Miami Heat defense.

The Boston Celtics' new coach Ime Udoka stressed the need for Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum to become playmakers in his introductory speech. The improvement in Brown’s handles will help him become a better playmaker as well.

Last season, Brown averaged 3.4 assists. For someone who will handle a large part of the offense next season, his passing range has to improve. The Boston Celtics’ retooled lineup offers intriguing prospects when the right playmakers are around. Enhanced playmaking from Brown could unleash the promise of Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard. It could also help Josh Richardson get back to his shooting averages while with the Miami Heat.

Expand Tweet

Brown’s upgrade in playmaking eases the pressure on Tatum and Marcus Smart to create for the Boston Celtics. It will make the team's offense flow more freely and will surely get their lowly assists number to go up.

#3 He has to pick up his defensive awareness

Jaylen Brown attempts to steal the ball away from Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors.

Jaylen Brown is an elite athlete that is tough to beat in one-on-one situations. He has a nice blend of size, length and strength to bother people in the post. Brown is also quick enough on the perimeter to be a nuisance. It is his consistency and effort as a help defender that has to pick up for the Boston Celtics.

Playing defense is different when the opponent is right in front of you and when that opponent is covered by someone else. A player’s defensive awareness is highlighted on help defense because it takes effort and commitment to check two opponents almost at once. It is in this area that Brown could clearly improve as he is already a good on-ball defender.

Expand Tweet

The Boston Celtics slipped to 16th in Defensive Ratings last season. Boston added Al Horford and Josh Richards to the rotation. These are stout and savvy defenders who will greatly help the C’s on the less glamorous part of basketball. With Ime Udoka being a defensive-minded coach, the emphasis on off-ball defense will be monitored. If the Celtics, and Brown, in particular, can elevate their defensive ratings, they would be a significantly better team.

In the loaded Eastern Conference with the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler as playoff adversaries, Brown and the Celtics better be on point defensively to have a chance of beating these elite teams and contend for the NBA championship.