Jaylen Brown met with extreme disrespect in midst of historic run

Jaylen Brown has been playing out of his mind lately. The Boston Celtics star poured in 37 points in Sunday’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, for his ninth straight game scoring 30 or more. He and Larry Bird are now tied for the longest such streak in franchise history.

If you were curious about the longest stretch in NBA history, it belongs to Wilt Chamberlain, who eclipsed 30 in 65 consecutive games back in 1961-62.

Brown’s historic run came, in part, during the first window of the league’s All-Star voting session, which tipped off on Dec. 17. The returns of said window were released Monday.

There aren't six players in the East who have better than Jaylen Brown

Simply put, it takes far too long to find Brown’s name on the list, as he’s ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference. There aren’t six players in the East who have been better than Brown this season; there’s just not.

Brown is sixth in the NBA in scoring this season at 29.7 points per game, and has the fourth-highest field goal percentage of the players within the top 10. Not only has he filled it up, but he’s been efficient in doing so.

Not to mention that the Celtics are exceeding just about everyone’s (externally, at least) expectations for them this season. Many, including myself, felt that Boston may be a lottery team after losing Jayson Tatum to an Achilles tear, then Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis in cost-cutting trades, and Al Horford and Luke Kornet to free agency.

Instead, they’re third in the Eastern Conference with a record of 19-12, and look like they can compete with anyone on any given night.

Meanwhile, the only two East players who average more points than Brown, Tyrese Maxey and Donovan Mitchell, haven’t impacted winning on the same level. Both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers round out the mess of mediocrity in the conference.

Jalen Brunson and Cade Cunningham haven’t scored at the same level as Brown, but have still played winning basketball, leading their respective teams to the first two spots in the East.

As for Giannis Antetokounmpo, the final name above Brown’s, has he even been healthy enough to be an All-Star this season? He’s missed 14 of the Milwaukee Bucks’ 32 games, and the team’s record reflects how inconsistent he’s been in terms of availability. Albeit, when he is actually on the court, his numbers are unbelievable. By name alone, the Greek Freak was always going to earn an All-Star selection.

All-Star voting is always a crapshoot, to be honest. Fans worldwide load up the league’s website or app and vote for their favorite players. On a global scale, Brown doesn’t have the name recognition, despite having won the 2024 Finals MVP, to be a staple on voters’ ballots.

Most casual fans likely know more about JB’s hair issues than his stellar play this season. That’s just how the voting process works. Why else would LaMelo Ball, who’s been wildly disappointing for the Charlotte Hornets this season, be ranked so highly?

Whenever the players' and coaches' votes are factored in, Brown will surely get the respect he deserves.