Jaylen Brown Leaps Into Top Five In Latest NBA MVP Power Rankings

The Boston Celtics had some of the wind taken out of their sails on Thursday night, as they collapsed in the second half against the Milwaukee Bucks, suffering a 116-101 defeat. Despite that, superstar forward Jaylen Brown turned in another standout performance in what is quickly becoming an MVP-caliber campaign.

Brown did his best to keep the C’s afloat, scoring 30 points while also racking up three rebounds and assists apiece, but the Bucks simply could not miss in the second half, so it didn’t matter. Still, the consistently high level Brown is playing at currently isn’t going unnoticed across the league.

With Brown continuing to establish Boston as a true playoff contender, even without Jayson Tatum on the court, his MVP candidacy has grown legs. In NBA.com’s latest MVP power rankings, Brown slotted in at No. 5 on the list, which is a big jump from the No. 10 spot he resided at on the previous list.

“Brown is not only on pace to average a career high in scoring and playing the best stretch of basketball in his career — the 2024 NBA Finals would like a word, though — as he has done the unexpected and is pulling the Celtics up with him,” Shaun Powell wrote.

“He’s doing Jayson Tatum’s job as well as Tatum, at least for the moment. Over the last six games, Brown has looked every bit like a top-tier player, averaging 32 ppg, 6.8 rpg and 6.3 apg. Overall, Boston has won seven of its last nine games.”

Everyone figured Brown would elevate his game without Tatum on the floor, but few folks believed he could become an MVP-caliber player. Through 24 games now, Brown is averaging 29.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game while shooting 49.9% from the field.

There’s still a long way to go this season, but if Brown keeps on playing at this level for the Celtics, a slew of accolades could be coming his way. Boston will look to get back in the win column when it welcomes the Detroit Pistons to town on Monday night.