MINNEAPOLIS – The Celtics will begin their toughest road trip of the season without All-Star Jaylen Brown on Thursday night. The team downgraded him to out two hours before the opening tip against the Minnesota Timberwolves after initially listing him as questionable. Joe Mazzulla gave an update on Brown in his press conference before the challenging match.

“It’s just a burden,” Mazzulla said of Brown’s injury. “He did it in the last game (against Raptors). It’s kind of commonplace, see how he feels. I think he’s out tonight, but we’ll see him progress.”

Mazzulla wasn’t sure if Brown’s injury would last beyond Thursday night. The winger’s right shoulder is wrapped in the final quarter of the Celtics’ blowout win over the Raptors on Tuesday. He did not speak to reporters after the win.

The emergence of Brown’s injury is a difficult time for a Celtics team that begins a four-game Western Conference road trip Thursday in Minnesota that includes four meetings against all projected playoff teams. The Celtics are already without Kristaps Porzingis due to an ankle injury that forced him to miss four straight games. Porzingis was optimistic that his return would be imminent, but constant minor ailments over the last month have prevented the Celtics from finding any consistency with the big man.

“I wasn’t at my best yet,” Porzingis told reporters Thursday morning. “It was tough having this summer with the surgery and everything. That’s not an excuse, but obviously I haven’t managed to get back into top shape yet. These little things derail you a little. But the season is long and we have many, many games ahead of us. I will continue to work on getting in top shape. I believe I can do it.”

Brown has missed just one game in the past two months since returning from a hip strain on Nov. 10 against the Bucks. He was on an offensive streak last week, scoring three times with 30-plus goals in his last five games before suffering the injury on Tuesday.

Brown’s next chance to return is Friday night against the Rockets before the Celtics continue their trip to Oklahoma City on Sunday and Denver on Tuesday.

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