Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics now trail the New York Knicks 3-1 in their second-round NBA playoff series after a 121-113 loss Monday night. To make matters worse, they also lost Jayson Tatum to what appeared to be a serious injury. Brown finished the game with 20 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.

NBA insider Brian Windhorst reported for ESPN, "Even if Horford doesn't re-sign -- he doesn't plan to retire and would like to return, sources said -- Boston is facing a payroll, with luxury taxes, next season of $464 million, according to ESPN front office insider Bobby Marks."

With the Celtics presumably among those teams, the question then becomes which players will be shipped out or not brought back, and who is presumable safe from the budget cuts? The question comes into even sharper focus given the fact that Boston's two star forwards,

Brown finished with 19 points, hitting a pair of threes and applying constant pressure through aggressive drives. While Jayson Tatum and Payton Pritchard lit up the scoreboard from outside, it was Brown’s interior presence that often initiated Boston’s best offensive sequences.

Boston Celtics get a boost as Jaylen Brown is set to play against the New York Knicks. He was suffering from knee soreness. Jayson Tatum is also available. This is crucial for the Celtics, who are trailing 0-2 in the series.

Celtics star Jaylen Brown wasn't all doom and gloom after Boston blew Game 2 and slipped into an 0-2 hole against the New York Knicks.