Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd tried his best to sow some division between the Boston Celtics superstar duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum.
Kidd said after Game 1 that Brown is the Celtics' best player. "When you talk about the Eastern Conference MVP, it seems like he has continued to pick up where he left off," Kidd told reporters Saturday.
He wasn't wrong. Brown entered Game 3 of the NBA Finals as the co-favorite (+145) to win series MVP alongside Tatum, who hadn't put his fingerprints on either of the first two games in Boston.
Game 3 proved exactly why those odds were so close. Tatum led the first half with 20 points, but Brown scored 24 of his 30 points in the second half, including some clutch shots late in the fourth quarter to lead the Celtics to a 106-99 win and 3-0 in the series.
Jaylen Brown in the CLUTCH 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/2LYTfG6daD
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 13, 2024
NBA Finals MVP Odds
Odds as of Wednesday night via BetMGM.
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Jaylen Brown | -350 |
| Jayson Tatum | +200 |
| Luka Doncic | +3000 |
| Jrue Holiday | +6600 |
| Derrick White | +12500 |
| Kyrie Irving | +15000 |
| P.J. Washington | +50000 |
After the win, Brown's odds skyrocketed. Brown is now the odds-on favorite to win NBA Finals MVP at -350, with Tatum now trailing at +200.
Entering Game 3, Brown had the second-most betting tickets and the third-highest percentage of handle for NBA Finals MVP at BetMGM. He opened the series at +625 behind Luka Doncic (+200) and Jayson Tatum (-120).
