Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Jaylen Brown Ascending Into Finals MVP Front-Runner
The Boston Celtics took the upper hand in their NBA Finals heavyweight matchup with the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night, running away 116-110 victors inside TD Garden to take a 2-1 series lead.
Not for the first time this season, they were led by explosive forward Jaylen Brown, who poured in 27 points in a dominant display.
Brown sizzled for 17 points in the first quarter alone, tying sharpshooting legend Ray Allen for the most points scored by a Celtic in any Finals quarter in the last 50 years. In addition, the 25 year-old joined LeBron James, Steph Curry, Tim Duncan, Vince Carter and James Harden as the only players since 1997 to tally at least 15 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in the first quarter of a playoff game.
The University of California product wasn’t alone in his efforts, as running partners Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart chipped in with 26 and 22 points of their own respectively. It was Brown however that set the tone early for the Celtics, and put them in good stead whilst he was guarded by Draymond Green – the Warriors best perimeter defender.
Unlike Game 2, Green’s attempts at distributing Brown’s play were unsuccessful, as Brown torched Green on powerful drives and long-distance jumpers all night long.
Following his stellar performance, Celtics’ coach Ime Udoka voiced his praises:
“I think it was one of his best games of getting guys organized into spots he wanted and getting our spacing correct, and attacking from there. I think it was almost a perfect night as far as the reads he made with his aggression and looking to score, but also one, two dribbles and finding guys all over the court.”
Learning of his coaches’ approval, Brown was grateful for the opportunity to grow and make plays in his postgame press conference:
Q: “Ime was just in here talking about how well you were playing as a playmaker and how you’ve grown in that throughout the season. As you came into the season, that was a big focus at the start of training camp. How do you feel like that’s grown throughout the year, and where do you feel like it has specifically improved?”
Brown: “Just experience. I feel like this is a year where I’ve been able to play with the ball in my hands a lot more. Ime has made an emphasis on that. Other years prior, I think my sample size was a lot smaller.
I appreciate Ime for having that trust in me and having that belief in me to be, like, no, we’re going to put the ball in his hands. Everything else has been just growth from there.
Experience is the best teacher. The way I learn things is just by putting me in the middle of it. So being able to get those reps all season long have helped me in the playoffs now, so shout-out to Ime for that”
Brown’s play on both sides of the ball has now put the Celtics in a position to take a 3-1 lead on their home floor in Game 4. Not only has his play allowed them to take a stranglehold of the series, Brown has ascended to the top of the Finals MVP leader board around the league.
Following Game 3, he is currently averaging 22.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, and if the Celtics go on to win it all, the Atlanta native could be crowned the best player of the series – and deservingly so.
