Jaylen Brown told Luka Doncic he brought the best out of him during NBA Finals
BOSTON -- Jaylen Brown played some exquisite defense against Luka Doncic during the NBA Finals, which earned Boston a title and the Celtics guard the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP trophy. After Boston's Game 5 victory over the Mavericks, Brown applauded Doncic for bringing out the best in his game.
After the Celtics clinched the franchise's 18th championship with a 106-88 win over the Mavericks at TD Garden on Monday night, Brown and Doncic embraced at half court and shared some praise for one another.
Lots of love between Jaylen Brown and Luka Doncic
"Luka, you're a killer," Brown said to the Dallas guard. "You got the best out of me. I love you, bro."
"I love you too, bro," Doncic replied in a video shared by Bleacher Report.
While the NBA doesn't have a handshake line like the NHL, star players tend to heap praise on each other after the battle is over. In this instance, it was greatness applauding greatness.
Brown locked down Doncic during the NBA Finals
Though Doncic got his points and averaged 29.2 points per game in the NBA Finals, he shot just 40.9 percent when Brown was his primary defender. The Dallas offense couldn't get much going when Brown was guarding the dangerous guard, as the Mavs scored 131 points on 154.4 possessions, good for just an 84.8 offensive rating. After averaging 8.8 assists per game in the three series leading up to the Finals, Doncic averaged just 5.6 helpers per game against Boston.
Brown was solid on the offensive end of the floor during the NBA Finals, averaging 20.8 points off 44 percent shooting over Boston's five-game series win. But it was his defense against Doncic that won Brown the MVP, another reminder that he was completely snubbed by the NBA when he didn't earn All-Defensive honors.
