Jaylen Brown went for 37 points, but the Boston Celtics still fell to the Atlanta Hawks 117-116 to open the NBA Cup.

The Hawks claimed a hard-fought 117-116 win against the Celtics in Game 1 of the Emirates NBA Cup's group play. Read more on Boston.com.

Facing an undermanned and seemingly overmatched Atlanta team, Boston played one of its sloppiest games of this season, coughing up the ball time and again and struggling to establish any real rhythm.

Boston will play four total games during Group Play of the tournament, each on the vibrant NBA Cup courts. The winningest team from each group advances to the quarterfinals in December, with point differential playing a crucial role in seeding,

Brown scored a season-high 37 points and Derrick White added 31 for Boston as it opened the in-season tournament on a green floor with a special parquet design. The defending NBA champions had a two-game winning streak snapped and lost for just the third time this season.