In addition to the victory, the good news for the Celtics on Sunday was that Brown’s right knee did not appear to give him any trouble. The time off, with the Celtics’ guard having missed the team’s final three regular-season games, appeared to do Brown some good health-wise. He didn’t have the best afternoon from a scoring standpoint. Still, the improved production offered by Derrick White and Payton Pritchard helped the reigning champs compensate for their three primary scorers having lackluster days. Game 2 is on Wednesday.

Brown is practicing after missing Boston’s last three regular-season games. The Celtics forward has been dealing with some knee pain and hopes to return to form for the playoffs.

Boston is locked into the two-seed in the East, so there’s no reason for the team’s core players to see action in Sunday’s regular-season finale. Brown and Tatum are among the absentees, with the former’s status being more concerning. Brown has received pain management injections in his right knee, but the expectation is that he’ll be good to go for the playoffs. Tatum is simply resting on Sunday. Sam Hauser and Baylor Scheierman will play rotation minutes against the Hornets.