Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown describe thrill of NBA All-Star Game 1-on-1 battle

What Tatum and Brown said about their 1-on-1 battle at All-Star Game originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The only way to split up the Jays is at the NBA All-Star Game.

For the second time in three seasons, Boston Celtics teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown found themselves on different All-Star rosters Sunday in Salt Lake City. Giannis Antetokounmpo grabbed Tatum with his first pick among the starters, while LeBron James snagged Brown with his second pick among the reserves.

That meant Tatum and Brown could match up against each other — and that’s exactly what happened at the end of the third quarter, when the Celtics stars went 1-on-1 for four consecutive possessions.

We’ll let you judge who came out on top — Brown hit Tatum with a “too small” gesture after scoring the first two buckets, but Tatum got his revenge by hitting a 3-pointer over Brown and forcing a shot clock violation at the other end — but both players seemed to revel in the experience.

“I think it was fun,” Brown said after the game, via ESPN.com. “Going against my brother in Jayson and going back and forth, it was like nobody was in there at all. It was just me and him.”

As Tatum noted, Sunday’s battle was hardly anything new for the Celtics duo, who regularly duke it out on the practice court.

“That was like another day at the office for us,” Tatum said. “Being on the same team for six years now, we’ve played countless number of 1-on-1 games, scrimmages against each other. We’ve always kind of brought the best out of each other.

“So, that was a normal day for us. Just millions of people watching on one of the biggest stages.”

Why Tatum’s historic All-Star Game is a good omen for Celtics

Tatum and Brown both put on a show throughout the game; Tatum scored an All-Star-record 55 points to take home MVP honors, while Brown was the top scorer for Team LeBron with 35 points. While the two have yet to be on the same All-Star Team — they were on opposing teams at the 2021 All-Star Game in Atlanta — Tatum enjoyed having another Celtics teammate present for the festivities.

“Extremely special,” Tatum said. “Three of the four times I’ve been an All-Star was with a teammate, two with JB, one with Kemba (Walker). Those are the best All-Stars, to share it with somebody that you spend every day of the week with essentially.”

Sunday was a great night for Celtics fans, who saw Tatum show out on the national stage and Brown debut his new mask in style. Now Tatum and Brown get a few days off before the C’s return to action Thursday against the Indiana Pacers.