What do Jaylen Brown and Joel Embiid have in common?

Celtics all-star guard Jaylen Brown is expected to “miss some time” after suffering a facial fracture on Wednesday night.

By video, Brown suffered a zygomatic arch fracture, according to the Pro Basketball Docs. If the fracture is displaced, he will likely require surgery.

The injury occurred when Brown was struck in the upper left cheek by an inadvertent and forceful pointed elbow from teammate Jayson Tatum. The injury left Brown on the ground for a couple of moments before being escorted to the locker room.

This injury is different to the one Philadelphia 76ers’ center Joel Embiid suffered in last year’s playoffs.  Embiid suffered an orbital fracture which caused him to miss two playoff games.

If Brown can avoid surgery, as Embiid did, he can return after the All-Star break and will wear a mask to protect his still-healing facial fracture.

While the mask does offer some protection, it can't 100% protect the fracture. Any contact to the mask will hurt for a couple of weeks, and a wrong hit could worsen the fracture.

When Embiid returned with the mask on, he was hit in the face by the Heat’s Dewayne Dedmon, leaving Embiid in visible pain on the court. Embiid would return after halftime after suffering a blow to the face.

Brown has been having one of his best seasons with the Celtics averaging career highs with 27 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 49% from the field. He’s missed seven games this season with various injuries, but the current Eastern Conference’s number-one seed is 6-1 without him.

Brown should return soon after the all-star break.