Boston Celtics wing Jaylen Brown has had a tough start to the season.
One year removed from a breakout season in which he shot 39.5 percent from deep, and after a summer of work on his handle and passing, Brown hasn't found his shot 13 games in. He's currently hitting 36.4 percent from the field and just 27 percent from behind the arc -- numbers that belie the improvements he made over the course of last season.
Still, Brown told reporters before practice on Tuesday that he expects things will get a little better soon.
"What we've just seen on the road, I think that's the worst it will get," Brown said.
Brown admitted this season hasn't started the way he wanted.
"It's been a rocky start to my third year," Brown said. "I knew it coming in, I knew it like after the first five games it was going to be a struggle each and every day until we figure things out because we're not playing as fluid as we can be playing."
The Celtics have some things to figure out after a disastrous road trip dropped them to 7-6 (and they would have been 6-7 if Marcus Morris hadn't bailed them out at the buzzer against the lowly Phoenix Suns). Chicago visits Boston on Wednesday, but home games against the Utah Jazz and Toronto Raptors could be challenging if Boston doesn't elevate its level of play. A 1-2 week would drop Boston back to .500.
Brown is far from the only player struggling, but no one would deny the talent is still there for the Celtics. Jayson Tatum's 27-point outpouring against the Portland Trail Blazers and Kyrie Irving's extended brilliance over the last five games were reminders that Boston's talent is still incredibly high.
But the Celtics still need to find a way to make all that talent complementary.
"I think what's on the other end of this will be good," Brown said. "So we just have to continue to stay with it, keep fighting, and not lose hope, and continue to get better."