In Celtics Nation, there is little to no doubt that Jaylen Brown belongs on first-team All-NBA this season, but around the country, it’s not so clear-cut. There seems to be a very clear top four emerging, between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic, and Luka Doncic, the top four MVP contenders.
The fifth spot on the first team seems truly up for grabs, and we’ve heard Brown’s name argued along with several others. Brown’s case has stayed solid all season, and arguably gotten even stronger with the return of Jayson Tatum, which seemed unlikely at the time.
The biggest knocks against JB are his lack of efficiency, his on/off numbers showing the team has a higher net rating with him on the bench, and his less-than-stellar off-ball defense. Those might seem like nitpicks, but when you’re assessing the best of the best across the entire NBA, you need a fine-tooth comb.
One of the things working in Brown’s favor is how reliable, consistent, and durable he has been all season for a Celtics team that was playing without their best player for the first 62 games. And that durability may just end up clinching the last first-team spot, as his competition is dropping like flies.
Cunningham and Edwards both ineligible for All-NBA
On Thursday, we learned that two of the most likely players to steal the final spot from Brown will not meet the eligibility requirements. First, we got word that Pistons’ superstar Cade Cunningham will be reevaluated in another week for his collapsed lung. The brutally unfortunate injury derailed Cade’s amazing season, and with the four games he’ll miss before the one-week timetable, he won’t be able to reach the 65-game mark.
Then later in the afternoon, we learned that Timberwolves’ superstar Anthony Edwards will miss Thursday night’s game with an illness, meaning he will now fall short of the 65-game mark as well. Ant came back from a knee injury recently, seemingly timed up in order to hit the minimum threshold, but either a sickness or the knee is going to force him to come up short anyway.
Brown deserves the spot regardless of who’s eligible
It’s sad that these injuries are popping up and removing great players from the conversation for these accolades, but the rules are the rules, and at the end of the day, playing in more games is very valuable. While I feel for Cunningham, Edwards, and any other injured stars, Jaylen is likely going to play in almost 10 more games than these guys, and that’s a big difference.
Brown will still face competition from guys like Donovan Mitchell, Kawhi Leonard, Jalen Brunson, and others, but it’s not pretty clear that he has the fifth strongest case of anyone who will meet the criteria.
The bottom line is that, injuries or not, Brown is absolutely having an incredible season and is completely deserving of a first-team All-NBA berth. It shouldn’t be tainted in any way by what happens to other players, but the reality is that this rule is going to render JB a near lock.