So here's my reality I'm an NBA player on the Boston Celtics, a team that has a chance to compete for the NBA championship. Nothing else really matters.

Tatum drew the ire of coach Brad Stevens early in the third quarter of a pre-Thanksgiving loss to the New York Knicks -- a debacle that might well have been the low point of the Celtics' season -- when he settled for a long midrange jumper after Stevens vehemently stressed at the half that he wanted his team to drive the ball and take high-quality shots. The decision landed Tatum on the bench just 1 minute, 10 seconds into the quarter. Tatum pointedly stood outside the huddle during the next two timeouts while assistant coach Jay Larranaga attempted to re-engage him. When Stevens called Tatum's name later in the game, he helped lead a late-game charge that fell short.

This, undoubtedly, is the kind of reaction the Celtics hope to get from Brown as he works to regain his mojo.

When Irving publicly gave a thumbs-up to the current starting lineup that includes Smart, Al Horford, Tatum and Marcus Morris, it raised eyebrows regarding his relationship with Brown. Kyrie says it's simple: As the team leader, it's his job to get the most of each player, and Brown, at times, has come up short.

"I have such high expectations for a guy like Jaylen, knowing how smart he is off the court, knowing his intellect, how he likes to be challenged," Irving says. "On the court, you just know there's so much more for him. You can see how much better he can get.

"I don't think Jaylen has ever been challenged in this way. When you're challenged sometimes, and you've been only doing it for three years, you can question a lot of things. You question yourself, and your confidence wavers because everything you've been doing up to this point has worked. You're used to doing little things to get you out of a rut, but suddenly that's not happening.

"You find yourself in a situation where every single day you are demanded to be great. That's a hard journey for anybody in this league, and to have that much talent and not be able to showcase it, I'm sure it is tough on him.

"I definitely understand it. I'm empathetic, and I'm also patient."

But he's also unafraid, he says, to get in Brown's grille: "I think he deserves that. In my career, I've had the opportunity to play with another great player who demands greatness out of you every single day. That comes with certain expectations. Sometimes you don't know exactly what those expectations are until you experience them. And that's what Jaylen is dealing with now.

"It's not about how many shots he's making or percentages or stats or anything like that. Now it's about, 'How do you get out of your own way to become the best version of yourself in an environment with other great players?' You're not in an environment where we can wait around for you. You're not surrounded by decent players who you will automatically play over, no matter how you perform. Now you have to work because other guys are putting in their work, trying to accomplish a goal bigger than themselves.

"The beautiful thing about Jaylen is he's smart enough to figure this out. He's in a transitional year."