Jaylen Brown named NBA Finals MVP
BOSTON -- Jaylen Brown capped off an incredible season for the Celtics with an NBA Championship and even more postseason hardware. Brown was named NBA Finals MVP on Monday night, after Boston finished off the Mavericks with a Game 5 victory at TD Garden.
Brown scored 21 points to go with eight rebounds and six assists in Boston's 106-88 win in Game 5, in addition to playing some excellent defense throughout the game. He was honored to receive MVP honors after winning his first NBA title, but also heaped tons of praise on his teammates -- especially Jayson Tatum.
"It was a full team effort and I share this with my brothers, and my partner in crime, Jayson Tatum," Brown said at midcourt after receiving the Bill Russell trophy. "He was with me the whole way.
"I'm grateful for every moment, every opportunity," added Brown.
Brown averaged 20.8 points off 44 percent shooting to go with 5.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in the Finals, putting an exclamation point on his incredible postseason run and eighth season with the Celtics. He now has both the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP trophy and the Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals MVP trophy, which he took home after averaging nearly 30 points per game in Boston's sweep of the Indiana Pacers.
In a few short months, he'll have his first championship ring.
Brown had one of his most efficient seasons for the Celtics during the regular season, averaging 23 points per game off a career-high 49.9 percent shooting from the floor. But he wasn't named to any of the three All-NBA teams, something he took personally as Boston embarked on its postseason run.
While the Celtics got contributions from just about everyone on the roster, Brown was the most complete player throughout the playoffs. He made several big buckets and key defensive players for the Celtics throughout the postseason, including a game-tying three at the end of Game 1 of the Conference Finals against the Pacers and what was essentially a game-sealing jumper in Game 3 of the Finals in Dallas, a nice finishing touch to his 30-point effort for Boston.