Jaylen Brown’s All-NBA result raises questions after carrying Celtics to No. 2 seed

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May 25, 2026 - 21:03

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Jaylen Brown’s All-NBA result raises questions after carrying Celtics to No. 2 seed originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

While the Boston Celtics had an abrupt end to their 2025-26 season, they surprised everyone with how well they did.

Losing Jayson Tatum last season to an Achilles tear, trading away Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, and losing Al Horford and Luke Kornet to free agency really had people thinking this would be a gap year for Boston.

Instead, the C’s other superstar Jaylen Brown put the team on his back and carried Boston to the second seed. And how was he rewarded by his efforts by the NBA? He was put on the All-NBA second team.

Brown truly balled out this season

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Brown finished the year as the Celtics top scorer, with averages of 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and one steal in 34.4 minutes per game.

Even with Tatum back, he still was the number one option this year. He was the sole reason their seed was as high as it was upon Tatum’s return, who only helped solidify it. However, even with all that, it seems the voters didn’t think Brown had done enough.

Some players ahead of him are debatable

Two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous Alexander, three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, DPOY Victor Wembanyama, and All-Stars in Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham made up the first team All-NBA.

Those first three names make sense; they are arguably the three best players in the NBA. However, Doncic and Cunningham are debatable. Both players had the rules bent for them, as they were able to bypass the 65-game minimum rule due to complications.

Even critics are calling it out

Some critics are definitely not OK with the results as well. Skip Bayless called out the NBA for giving first team to Doncic over Brown, as he believed Brown did more for his team on both sides of the floor.

It was also pointed out that Brown and Doncic were the only two players in the NBA to average at least 28/6/5 this season, which adds more doubt to Cunningham’s case as well.

In the end, there’s not much Brown can do. If the voters feel he wasn’t first team, he doesn’t get the accolade. However, fans will always know how much he did for Boston this season, and hopefully that’s enough for him.

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