After losing the first game of the finals last Thursday, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd left the internet buzzing when he said, “Jaylen’s (Brown) their best player.” Picking Brown as the better Celtics player over Jayson Tatum, many believed that Kidd was playing mind games to create a divide in his opponent’s locker room and gain an edge in the finals. However, days after his controversial statement, Kidd denied all allegations and revealed what led to him calling Brown the best player, even disclosing the connection that he shares with the Celtics star.

During a recent interview with NBA Radio, J Kidd claimed that he didn’t mean to cause such a stir with his comments, “My comment about Jaylen Brown is from watching tape and watching Game 1.” In the first game, Brown was the highest-scoring player on his team with 22 points and what impressed Kidd the most was that Brown also took up the challenge of guarding Luka Doncic while doing everything else to help his team win. “That’s what your best player does.” Kidd said.

Moreover, Kidd shares ties with Jaylen Brown that go beyond their NBA days, “Also a Cal alum, so we have ties.” Yes, although coming from different eras of basketball, Kidd and Brown went to the same college before starting their pro career. While Kidd played for the University of California for two years from 1992-94, Brown only spent one year in that college back in 2015-16. But sharing the same alma mater, Kidd does have a soft corner for Jaylen and he even stood by his comments of calling him the best Celtics player. “That’s not mental warfare, that’s just my opinion.” Kidd added.

Jaylen Brown and the Celtics respond to Jason Kidd’s comment

While Jason Kidd claimed that he had no intentions to use his words as mental warfare, it seemed to have done the trick regardless. Responding to Kidd’s initial comments, Jaylen Brown tried to keep his head straight and focus on the task ahead, “I don’t have no reaction. It’s a team game. I’m trying to focus on that. Everybody has their own opinions.” Even his co-star Jayson Tatum realized that it might have been a ruse to create a divide in the team and said, “We understand that people try to drive a wedge in between us… This is not our first time at the rodeo.”

However, not every Celtics player was in disagreement with Jason Kidd as former Champ Jrue Holiday also shared the same sentiment, “I don’t think he’s lying.” Throughout the entire playoffs, Brown has taken up the challenge of guarding the best player on the opposite team and excelled in that role. Moreover, his offensive efficiency has been at par with Tatum despite being more effective on defense. Because of that, Brown even bagged the Eastern Conference MVP trophy for his impressive performance. So, a case can be made that he might be the best player on the Celtics roster, at least in these playoffs. This difference in opinion could cause a divide in the Celtics locker room even though Kidd didn’t intend it to.

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