LeBron James won’t be winning MVP this year. Gone are the days when he probably should win MVP more often than not. It’s a new day, and while we may have reached the period when either Nikola Jokic or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should win every year, there are other options. James picked one, a pretty surprising name, in fact, for his 2025-26 MVP.
LeBron James makes MVP case for Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Brown dropped 32 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, and three steals in a dominant win over the Los Angeles Lakers. It moved the Boston Celtics to 37-19, second in the Eastern Conference. This is in spite of trading both Anfernee Simons and Kristaps Porzingis away at various times this year and with Jayson Tatum being out the entire season.
“This whole MVP thing, I don’t understand why his name is not getting talked about some as well,” Lakers star LeBron James said via ESPN. “Like, nobody gave them a shot to start the season. And he’s averaging what, 30? Just under 30? It’s a popularity contest sometimes, I tell you.”
The case James believes Brown has lies in the Celtics’ immense success without Tatum and with Porzingis leaving before the season and Simons during the middle of it. Brown is the star left in Boston, and they’re one of the best teams in basketball.
“I think he just used the motivation of a lot of people just saying that they’re going to have a down year,” James added. “The whole championship team pretty much is kind of revamped, and he used it as motivation to keep them afloat. They’re playing great basketball, and it’s because of him and the rest of those guys. He’s taken that next step.”
Brown was told about James’ comments, and he responded, “It’s an honor to play the Celtics-Lakers rivalry. It’s an honor for LeBron, who’s arguably the best player to ever play the game, giving me some high praise. So, I’m just grateful.”
Brown revealed that his first-ever start was against the Cleveland Cavaliers, led by James. Then, the Lakers forward told Brown he expected him to be an All-Star someday. Brown would go on to make five All-Star teams and one All-NBA Second Team.
“We talked about that at the All-Star Game. ‘You remember that 10 years ago?’ And he smiles like, ‘Of course, I’m not surprised at anything you’re doing right now. So just keep proving people wrong. Keep doing what you got to do and keep leading your team and people will take notice,'” Brown said.
Jaylen Brown makes his own MVP case
While Jaylen Brown didn’t mirror Cade Cunningham in outright saying he should be the MVP, he did make a bold claim that should translate to the award. Brown said he believes he’s the best player who plays both offense and defense in the entire sport after the win.
“I feel like I’m the best two-way player in the world,” Brown said. “I play both ends on the court. Night to night, I’m available, which is hard to do. I’m a leader. I help lead my team, empower my team to come out and play confidently, stuff that doesn’t always show up on the analytics. And I’m a winner. I come out and try to win every single night. So I’m grateful.”
Brown faces an uphill battle for MVP. Anyone beating Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Nikola Jokic is hard to envision. That is, unless one or both miss more games than they can to qualify for awards. Gilgeous-Alexander is the FanDuel favorite at -145. Jokic is +270. Cunningham is +650.
Victor Wembanyama is +2500, and Luka Doncic is +4000. Brown comes in next at +5000, so he’s a pretty long shot.
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