This was supposed to be a gap year for the Boston Celtics, but Jaylen Brown had other plans.

The 29-year-old swingman is in the midst of the best season of his 10-year NBA career, averaging a career-high 29.6 points on 49.9% shooting, along with 6.4 rebounds, five assists, and a steal per game. Beyond the significant leap that he has made offensively, Brown has remained excellent on the defensive end, further cementing his status as one of the league’s premier two-way players. With Jayson Tatum expected to be sidelined for the season due to an Achilles injury, Brown has taken full control of the Celtics—and Boston has hardly missed a beat.

The Celtics are currently tied for second in the Eastern Conference with the New York Knicks at 24–14, trailing the first-place Detroit Pistons by just four games. After stumbling to a 5–7 start, Boston has surged up the standings, a rise driven largely by Brown emergence. Since December 1, he has elevated his play even further, averaging 30.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 5.3 assists, as the Celtics have won 13 of their last 18 games.

With leading MVP candidate Nikola Jokic now expected to fall short of the 65-game minimum required for the league’s end-of-season awards, Brown’s recent stretch has opened the door for him to enter the conversation for the league’s most prestigious individual award. He has some tough competition, headlined by reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Doncic, but if the Celtics can keep on winning, the case for Brown will be difficult to ignore.

One intriguing wrinkle, should Brown ultimately win the MVP, is how it would reshape the Celtics’ internal hierarchy. He has operated as the second option behind Tatum for nearly a decade, but that status quo would be difficult to restore if Brown does claim the MVP. Having already captured Finals MVP during Boston’s 2024 championship run, Brown will be in possession of the top two trophies that a player can win, something that calls out “Top Dog” rather than “Second Fiddle.”

The Celtics’ ability under head coach Joe Mazulla to focus on who is actually on the floor for them rather than dwelling on who isn’t has propelled them so far and should continue to do so in the coming months. This has allowed them to show the world this version of Jaylen Brown, one that is capable of leading a contender by setting the tone on both ends of the floor. 

What should have been a year of patience has instead become Brown’s coming out party as a bona fide superstar.