Jaylen Brown’s MVP candidacy is getting a lot of support from LeBron James

Sunday night in Los Angeles, The Boston Celtics silenced their home crowd with a convincing 111-89 win over the Lakers. in the Cripto.com Arena. The win improved Boston to 37-19, second in the East, and completed a 2-0 season against Los Angeles.

With 32 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals, Jaylen Brown he carried Boston behind as the team shot 48.2% from the floor. In 51 games this season, Brown is averaging 29.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game on 48.1 percent shooting, career highs in scoring and rebounding.

After the game, the four-time MVP LeBron James publicly approved Brown’s MVP bid.

“This whole MVP thing, I don’t understand why his name isn’t being talked about as well,” James said. “Like, nobody gave them a chance to start the season. And he’s averaging 30? A little under 30? It’s a popularity contest sometimes, I tell you.”

The Celtics have been without Jayson Tatum all season due to a torn Achilles, and are no longer on the roster with Jurau Holiday, Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis. Tatum is expected to return by at least March.

James praised Brown for providing stability to a rebuilt roster while improving his own performance.

“I think he just tapped into the motivation of a lot of people who just said he was going to have a down year,” James said. “The whole championship team was pretty much overhauled, and he used that as motivation to keep them going. They’re playing great basketball, and that’s because of him and the other guys. He took the next step.”

Brown took on an expanded leadership role, helping Boston remain among the conference’s elite despite the overhaul. Additions like Nikola Vucevic have bolstered the rotation, but Brown’s production has brought results.

Earlier this month, Brown and James were teammates on the USA Stripes All-Star team, where they revisited the rookie exchange where James told Brown he was going to be an All-Star.

Their relationship previously gained attention during the 2024 Las Vegas Summer League Brown questioned the professional readiness of Bronie James.

“Our relationship was pretty respectful, aside from what he said about Broney in summer league,” James noted of Brown on Sunday. “But other than that, other than that, we were fine.”

Brown later spoke about Broni in a post on social media.

“It’s flexible to have my son by his side in the NBA. … Brony has all the tools around him to be successful. I’m looking forward to watching him grow.”

James said he and Brown “will be fine.”

“I think he went on social media and said something about it,” James said. “It’s all good, but Brony has a long way to go, but that’s another story. But the kid, I mean, listen, JB is (great). S—, he’s playing great basketball, man.”

Before Sunday’s matchup, former NBA star Tracy McGrady also weighed in, arguing that as currently constructed, the Celtics could reach the Eastern Conference Finals with Brown leading at an MVP level. While it might sound bold coming from McGrady, Boston has remained competitive despite the roster changes. The Celtics are undoubtedly a threat in the East and a title contender.