Jaylen Brown Named 2024 Finals MVP over Jayson Tatum as Celtics Win NBA Title
June 18, 2024
Jaylen Brown was named the 2024 NBA Finals MVP after the Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks Monday night 106-88 in Game 5 at TD Garden.
Brown averaged 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. He had a 30-point performance in Game 3 and put up 21 to close out the series Monday.
Brown's co-star, Jayson Tatum, had a strong case to win Finals MVP as well, averaging 22.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game throughout the series, but voters ultimately decided Brown had the stronger performance.
If the pairing of Tatum and Brown stays together, it seems likely Tatum will have a Finals MVP of his own soon.
While Brown walks away with the Finals MVP trophy, the Celtics put together a full team performance throughout the playoffs, especially in the ultimate round.
Brown was humble after receiving the Bill Russell Trophy, expressing that the award didn't belong just to him.
"It was a full team effort and I share this with my brothers and my partner in crime Jayson Tatum," Brown said. "He was with me the whole way, we share this s--t together."
While Brown is certainly a deserving Finals MVP, the result was a bit surprising in the eyes of NBA fans. After the award was announced, fans took to social media to express their shock, while others said it was the right decision.
HoopsHype @hoopshypeJayson Tatum is the first player to lead an NBA champion in playoff scoring, rebounds and assists and NOT win Finals MVP since the award exists.<br><br>Larry Bird: 1984<br>Hakeem Olajuwon: 1994<br>Tim Duncan: 2003<br>LeBron: 2012, 2013 and 2016<br>Nikola Jokic: 2023<br><br>All those won Finals MVP. <a href="https://t.co/0nDLDWvx79">pic.twitter.com/0nDLDWvx79</a>
Some fans might believe that Tatum should have been the MVP over Brown, but the two likely don't care now that they are NBA champions.
Hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy has been a long time coming for Tatum, Brown and several other members of the Celtics, who have been one of the best teams in basketball over the last few years.
Boston came up short in 2022, but improvement from Tatum and Brown along with a handful of outstanding moves from the front office have led to the 18th championship in franchise history.
B/R Recommends