NEW ORLEANS -- "I am sitting on a cushion," Boston Celtics wing Jaylen Brown said on Monday. "That's how I'm doing."

The Celtics were about to take on the New Orleans Pelicans, and Brown was sitting in a dark corner of the Celtics' locker room staring at his phone. Around him, teammates were preparing for the final contest of a three-game road trip, which Brown would miss with a bruised tailbone -- suffered in a nasty fall against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.

So Brown was sitting on a cushion.

"It's a (expletive) (expletive) of an injury," Brown said. "But I'll be alright. ... I didn't know how much you use your tailbone for. Any time you bend over, any time you lift your legs up or try to push off any type of way, pain. So as soon as I'm able to tolerate it, I'll be back on the floor."

The prognosis is good -- X-rays came back negative for any longer-term damage, and once the soreness goes away, Brown is expected to be fine to return. But he seemed especially frustrated, particularly for an injury that would likely only require a few days to heal.

"It's frustrating not to be there for your team," Brown said, when asked about it. "We're struggling right now, when your back's against the wall, I believe that's the perfect opportunity to show who you really are. I would love more than anything to be out there right now in the midst of everything. Everything that's going on, the media saying this, saying that, just go out there and just kick somebody's ass, or give it your best shot with your teammates, just to try to win. We need that more than anything, desperately. We haven't been doing that, but I would still like to be out there."

The Celtics took care of business against the Pelicans, pulling away late for a comfortable double-digit victory. The offense finally looked like itself -- each player fitting into a role to help keep New Orleans down.

The team's inability to fit into their roles through 20 games was one of Brown's concerns before tip.

"That's a part of this league, a part of life, challenges and things like that," Brown said. "Just coming out everyday and trying to do what's best for the team, but also balancing what's best for yourself and your family. Ultimately if we win, that's number one. And everybody knows that. So right now, we're in a position, backs against the wall, it's the perfect opportunity to show who we really are."

Asked what bugs him about the media, Brown smiled.

"Nothing, nothing bugs me," he said. "The media is a part of life. It can be good, it can be bad, it is what it is at this point. The internet is undefeated. Whether you like it or whether you don't like it. So I actually love the internet, I love the media, I'm a big fan of technology, even if it's against me or whatever. It is what it is, it's life. I don't get too caught up into the media, and we shouldn't either. Like I said, our backs are against the wall, and we've got to fight."