Tracy McGrady is still carrying water for Jaylen Brown, but the latest version of that argument has drifted way past reasonable.
The connection between Brown and McGrady has been public for years, so it’s no shock to hear T-Mac defend him. That part is easy to understand. What’s harder to buy is the idea that Brown was somehow robbed in last season’s MVP race, which McGrady doubled down on during a recent episode of Cousins with Vince Carter & Tracy McGrady.
McGrady framed Brown’s finish as a slight, saying:
“Shading him from things that he actually earned. Like, if you look at if anybody would have put up those types of numbers last year under the circumstances with Boston, with JT being out and no expectations for them to do anything in the Eastern Conference, they would have won second, runner-up, or MVP, averaging 28 points and being second in the East, like to place him what fourth or fifth?
Is so disrespectful and just nasty work. What [are] we doing out here, man.”
That’s where the argument starts to fall apart. Brown had a strong season.
Nobody is denying that. But a sixth-place MVP finish is not some league-wide insult, and it’s certainly not evidence of a conspiracy.
There’s a real case to be made that Brown should have landed on first-team All-NBA. If Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham hadn’t received special treatment, maybe he would have.
But that’s a different conversation from pretending Brown was clearly shortchanged for MVP. He wasn’t.
The truth is simpler: Brown didn’t have a better season than the players who finished ahead of him. If you want to argue he should have been ranked above Doncic or Cunningham because of games played, that’s fair. Once the NBA changed the rules for those players, though, Brown’s path to the top was gone.
The numbers still mattered, and they weren’t on Brown’s side in a race this tight. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was more deserving.
Victor Wembanyama was more deserving. Nikola Jokic was more deserving.
Cunningham’s Pistons had a better record than the Celtics, and Doncic’s production was better than Brown’s across the board.
That’s why the idea that voters teamed up to keep Brown down just doesn’t hold up. It does a disservice to the league, to the other players in the race, and to Brown himself.
He wasn’t robbed. He was rewarded.
Making second-team All-NBA and finishing sixth in MVP are both major accomplishments. Brown earned them. McGrady’s loyalty is obvious, but this particular crusade has gone too far.
In Other News...
Celtics Owner Just Framed The Jaylen Brown Trade Differently
Jaylen Browns move to Philadelphia has already become one of the defining storylines of Bostons offseason, and the latest comments from Celtics owner Bill Chisholm only add another layer to it. Brown spent 10 seasons in Boston, grew into a franchise cornerstone and won 2024 NBA Finals MVP honors, so the idea of seeing him in 76ers colors still lands with plenty of weight for Celtics fans, even with Philadelphia now trying to build toward championship contention in 2026-27.
Chisholm framed the decision as the kind of call that only comes when a front office believes strongly in the path it is taking, even if the reaction around the league stays heated. The trade has already sparked plenty of debate, and it is likely to get even more attention when Boston and Philadelphia meet again, with every matchup now carrying the extra edge that comes from a star like Brown changing sides. [Read more 🡒]
Jayson Tatum's Viral Workout Has Celtics Fans Arguing About His Shot Selection
The Celtics made the rounds on social media this week after sharing clips of Jayson Tatums recent workout, and the one-legged 3-pointer in the mix was the part that got people talking. It is the kind of offseason video that can turn into a referendum in a hurry, especially around a star whose shot diet is already watched closely by Boston fans.
There is some history behind the reaction, too, since Tatum tried the shot a handful of times last season and did not make one of them, even if it was only a tiny slice of his overall attempts. So the debate is less about whether he can pull off a flashy workout rep and more about whether it belongs in the real game plan, even though it is hard to imagine this particular shot defining what the Celtics do next season. [Read more 🡒]
Tracy McGrady Just Weighed In On A Celtics Debate Fans Know Too Well
Jaylen Browns 2025-26 season gave the Celtics exactly the kind of steady production they needed while Jayson Tatum was sidelined, and it also reignited a familiar debate around how much credit Brown deserves when Boston leans on him. He answered with a big year, averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game, then capped it by earning All-NBA Second Team honors.
Tracy McGrady recently stepped into that conversation and publicly defended Brown against the criticism that tends to follow him whenever the Celtics bigger-picture story gets messy. For Boston fans, it is another reminder that Browns value has never been as simple as the arguments around him, especially after a season in which he kept the team afloat and still found his way onto an elite list. [Read more 🡒]