Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser lead Celtics in 132-106 rout of Hawks

Greg Dudek, Boston Herald on Jan 17, 2026

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The Atlanta Hawks sure could have used All-Defensive guard Dyson Daniels to defend Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown Saturday night. But with Daniels sitting out the game due to an ankle injury, Brown torched every other member of the Hawks who tried to guard him.

Brown, a Georgia native who certainly enjoyed his homecoming trip to Atlanta as his high school retired his number Friday, exploded right out of the gate, netting 18 points in the first quarter and finishing with a game-high 41 points as the Celtics throttled the Hawks, 132-106, at State Farm Arena.

Brown, who shot 14 for 30 from the floor and made 11 of 12 free throws to offset a cold 2-for-9 shooting night from behind the arc, did all of his work in three quarters as Joe Mazzulla sat Brown in the final frame with the Celtics in complete control. The rest was much-needed for Brown as the Celtics will conclude a four-game road trip against the East-leading Pistons on Monday night.

“I think it was just some home cooking tonight,” Brown told NBC Sports Boston sideline reporter Kayla Burton. “Just being aggressive, coming out, just getting to my spots, being aggressive and let the rest take care of itself.”

Brown added: “I think (this weekend) was great. This is just like the exclamation point. (Friday) was a great event, my jersey got retired at Wheeler(high school), where I won a state championship. I grew up 25, 20 minutes from here, so to be able to come in and get the win, and have a big performance was great.”

It was hard to tell that the Celtics were without starting guard Payton Pritchard, who missed his first game of the season due to left ankle soreness, as Boston put up a season-high 82 points in the first half on 63.2% shooting from the field and a 14-for-24 (58.3%) showing from 3-point range. The offensive onslaught gave the Celtics an 82-51 halftime lead after they outscored the Hawks, 52-28, in the second quarter.

Sam Hauser joined Brown in the spotlight with his lights-out shooting. Hauser knocked down 7 of 8 3-pointers in the first half and ultimately hit 10 of 21 shots from deep — all his shots on the night were from 3-point range — to pour in 30 points. The 10 3-pointers tied Hauser’s career high.

Anfernee Simons continued to have a hot hand, coming off the bench to score 14 points and Neemias Queta was assertive in the paint with 14 points and seven rebounds. Baylor Scheierman got the starting nod in place of Pritchard and chipped in with nine points.

The Hawks also were without former Celtics fan favorite Kristaps Porzingis. Like his time with Boston, Porzingis’ first season with the Hawks has been marred by injuries. The 7-foot-2 center missed his fourth straight game due to left Achilles tendonitis and that came after a knee injury kept him off the court earlier this month. Porzingis also sat out 10 consecutive games in December as the illness he dealt with last season with the Celtics continues to impact him.

Brown was aggressive from the start and seemed determined to put on a show in front of his hometown. He took 13 shots in the first quarter and went to the line six times to set the foundation for his fifth 40-point performance of the season. The four-time All-Star did most of his damage in the paint to give the Celtics a 30-23 lead after the opening 12 minutes.

The Celtics really took off in the second quarter after back-to-back buckets from Luke Kennard and Mouhamed Gueye pulled the Hawks within four just 1:16 into the frame. Boston used a 10-0 run, punctuated by a Simons jumper and 3-pointer, to open up a commanding 17-point lead with 7:40 left before halftime.

The Celtics kept pouring it on in the second quarter as they orchestrated a 20-3 tear spearheaded by Brown and Hauser. Hauser hit all six of the 3-pointers he took in the frame, including three of them coming in the run, and Brown added in a highlight-reel play when he finished a circus shot at the rim while pinned down his left arm for the and-one bucket.

Boston kept attacking to start the third quarter with Derrick White not letting up and setting the tone for the second half with a steal and layup. Brown put up another 12 points in the quarter while Queta chipped in with eight as the Celtics’ lead ballooned to as much as 43 points in the stanza.

The fourth quarter featured garbage time and Hauser hunting Marcus Smart’s franchise record of 11 3-pointers made in a single game. Hauser got on the precipice of tying Smart after he canned back-to-back triples midway through the quarter. Hauser, and his teammates, were well aware of the record as the Celtics kept feeding Hauser. He launched away, but he missed six straight triples in a three-minute span before Mazzulla pulled him with 4:55 left.

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