Celtics
“The media sometimes can take it as I was trying to start something between Jayson and Jaylen.”
Jason Kidd certainly stirred the pot during the 2024 NBA Finals.
After Boston’s lopsided victory in Game 1 against the Mavericks, Kidd generated plenty of headlines by labeling Celtics swingman Jaylen Brown as the best player on Boston’s roster.
“Well, Jaylen’s their best player,” Dallas’ head coach told reporters. “So, just looking at what he does defensively, he picked up Luka [Doncic] full-court, he got to the free-throw line. He did everything. That’s what your best player does.”
Of course, Brown had a dominant playoff run for the Celtics, taking home both Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals MVP honors en route to Boston’s 18th championship.
Still, even if Brown is a star in his own right with multiple All-Star honors, the aforementioned postseason achievements, and an All-NBA Second Team nod on his resume, the general consensus is that Jayson Tatum is the top player on the Celtics’ roster.
“I don’t have no reaction,” Brown told reporters after Kidd’s comment. “It’s a team game. We’re trying to focus on that. Everybody has their own opinions.”
While the thinking at the time was that Kidd was trying to drive a wedge between Tatum and Brown in the midst of the Finals, he pushed back against those claims this week while speaking with NBC Sports Bay Area.
“He was playing the best I think at the time. Some took it as I was trying to start something. But he had just won the Eastern Conference MVP, and then he ended up winning MVP of the Finals, so I don’t know if I was wrong,” Kidd told NBC Sports Bay Area reporter Monte Poole.
“But as we know, the media sometimes can take it as I was trying to start something between Jayson and Jaylen, but it wasn’t that. … I was just making the comment that Jaylen was playing at a high level, (Jrue) Holiday agreed.”
Holiday did acknowledge that Kidd wasn’t “lying” about his claim that Brown was the best player on Boston’s roster, but immediately clarified his comments after the Celtics’ Game 2 victory over Dallas.
“If I could say something before we jump in. I want to address the comment that was made yesterday. I feel like people kind of took that out of context,” Holiday said. “I’ve been hearing that I prefer JB over JT and that’s not what that was. I like to praise my teammates.
“I like to praise my teammates when they’re playing well, and I feel like that’s what I did my best to do. … Just to address the comment yesterday, I do not prefer one or the other. I prefer both. Both of them are superstars, and it’s being shown out here on the biggest stage in the world.”
If the Celtics plan on defending their title in 2024-25, Boston will need to rely on both Tatum and Brown to lead the way on a deep, talented roster.
“You gotta go through Boston. They won it this past season and they’re built to compete for another one,” Kidd said of the Celtics’ status as defending champions this year. “You gotta beat the defending champs. I’m happy they’re in the East.
“Hopefully we can see them again, but it’s going to be a tough season because there are so many talented teams. Hopefully we’re one of the teams where if Boston gets there, we can see them again.”
Boston.com Today
Sign up to receive the latest headlines in your inbox each morning.