Jaylen reflects on awards criticism and embraces negativity after earning ECF MVP originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Jaylen Brown’s Eastern Conference Finals started with him being left off the All-Defensive and All-NBA teams. It ended with him hoisting the Larry Bird Trophy as series MVP.
Brown let his play do the talking after turning down the award, propelling Boston to the NBA Finals with stellar performances in all four games. His run was highlighted by a 40-point outburst in Game 2 and a 29-point outburst in Game 4.
In the final minutes of the series clincher, Brown hit the tying shot, came up with a huge block on Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard and then served to Derrick White for what turned out to be the game-winning 3-pointer of the match. 105-102 victory.
To Brown’s surprise, Celtics legend Cedric Maxwell announced him as the Eastern Conference Finals MVP.
“I didn’t expect it at all,” Brown said of the honor. “I never win. I was just happy that we won.”
Asked about his All-NBA snub after Game 2, Brown stated that he “didn’t have time to care” with his team two wins away from the Finals. While it was the perfect response, there’s little doubt that being overlooked bothered him, especially when he was coming off the best season of his career on both ends of the floor.
But on Monday night he was all smiles as he accepted the Bob Cousy and Larry Bird trophies.
The insults about the awards weren’t the only negativity surrounding Brown during this series. Before Game 4, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith reported that a source told him about Brown: “It’s not so much that he’s underrated. It’s that he’s just not liked because of his ‘I’m better than you’ attitude. .. It’s the same reason he’s not as marketable as he should be. Brown responded to Smith’s report: “Cite your source.”
With the Larry Bird Trophy next to his microphone on stage, Brown opened up about ignoring the outside noise.
“At this point I’m at that stage of my life where I embrace all forms of negativity or whatever,” he said. “Some things I don’t understand. I’m not supposed to understand. But I just know who I am and what I stand for. Sometimes it makes people uncomfortable and sometimes I miss things, I miss things.” about opportunities, prizes, marketing deals or whatever.
“At this point, I just embrace it. I am who I am, and I stay true to my beliefs. And I’m one of those people who would die for what they believe in, so I just embrace it.” I’m grateful to be in this position and that the energy is about to change.”
The pundits and award pickers may not appreciate the progress Brown has made in his career, but his teammates certainly do. Derrick White spoke highly of him after Monday’s win.
“He’s unreal,” White said of Brown. “I knew he was unreal when I came here, but the great thing about JB is that he has improved every year he has been in this league, which is a testament to his hard work and dedication.
“He was unreal on both sides of the ball throughout the series. A complete player that you don’t see much these days. He was unreal on both sides of the ball, and I love being his teammate.”
Brown was proud of his improved defense during the regular season. He made it known multiple times how much it would mean to him to earn an All-Defensive nod for his efforts.
He admits that being left out of the league’s best defensive players list has hurt, but he hasn’t let the omission affect his confidence.
“I think I’m one of the best two-way wings, guards, whatever you want to say, in this game,” he said. “I thought I upped the ante this year. I did the matchup, I picked guys up full court, I ran guys off screens, I fought the greats and I felt like I should have been on All-Defensive That probably hurt me the most because that’s one of the things I set out this season that I wanted to be.
“But you know, as time went on and I got to this point, I didn’t care anymore. I don’t care who sees what, as long as my team knows my value, my city knows my value, my family.” , that’s all I really care about. But I like to put my hat on just being a versatile winger and being able to do both at any time, you saw that.
Brown and the C’s will have plenty of time to recharge as Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals is scheduled for Thursday, June 6 at 8:00 PM ET at TD Garden. Boston will compete against the Dallas Mavericks or the Minnesota Timberwolves for Banner 18.
You can view the full finals schedule here.
