The Celtics star appeared to grab Josh Hart’s crotch while trying to get around a pick in the early moments of the second half of the Game 5 matchup at TD Garden on Wednesday night. Hart did not take kindly to the apparent cup-check, shoving Brown in a testy exchange over that resulted in technical fouls for both.

But in the second round against the New York Knicks, they lost the first two games at home after blowing double-digit second-half leads in both games. They ended up losing in five games, and they also lost star forward Jayson Tatum in Game 4 to a ruptured Achilles that will threaten his availability for next season.

The Boston Celtics let the New York Knicks run away with a critical Game 4 victory in Madison Square Garden late last night, putting their own title defense in

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."

Mazzulla, Brown and Horford all said that Boston didn't play up to its standard defensively. This is true, particularly in the second half. But both sides of the floor are connected, and Mazzulla pointed out that the Knicks were able to play with pace in part because of the Celtics' poor offensive execution.