The Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks 4-1 in the 2024 NBA Finals. Some of the games were competitive, but Boston ultimately emerged victorious nonetheless. Mavs head coach Jason Kidd sparked headlines during the Finals after making an attention-catching Jaylen Brown claim. Kidd called Brown the Celtics’ “best player” during an NBA Finals press conference.

Kidd has since explained his comments. He did so once again while speaking on Dubs Talk: A Golden State Warriors Podcast, video via Celtics on NBC Sports Boston.

“He (Brown) was playing the best at the time,” Kidd said. “Some took it as I was… trying to start something. But he had just won the Eastern Conference MVP. He actually ended up winning the MVP in the Finals. So I don’t know if I was wrong. But as we know, media sometimes can take it as I was trying to start something between Jayson and Jaylen. But it wasn’t that. I was just making the comment that Jaylen is playing at a high level… It wasn’t that I was starting anything. But Jaylen was, he was playing his best basketball at the right time… Some took it as I was trying to start something but I wasn’t.”

What exactly did Jason Kidd say?

Kidd clearly believes in his comment even if he wasn’t trying to start something. The Mavs head coach is a fan of Brown without question.

“Well Jaylen is their best player,” Kidd said while speaking to reporters in June. “Just looking at what he does defensively, he picked up Luka (Doncic) full court. He got to the free throw line. He did everything. And that’s what your best player does… He plays both sides, defense and offense at a high rate. He’s been doing that the whole playoffs. When you talk about the Eastern Conference MVP and it seems like he’s continued to pick up where he left off. So he’s playing at a high rate.”

People around the NBA world immediately began to wonder if Kidd was trying to get inside the the Celtics stars’ heads. Jayson Tatum has been regarded as Boston’s best player over the past few years, but Brown had just won the Eastern Conference Finals MVP at the time.

Brown and Tatum did not lean into Kidd’s comments too much during the NBA Finals. Brown explained how the Celtics are focusing on the task at hand. Tatum echoed a similar sentiment. The Celtics stars were focused on leading the team and they ended up accomplishing their goal of winning a championship.

When will Mavericks and Celtics play in 2024-25?

The Mavericks-Celtics NBA Finals rematch will draw plenty of attention during the 2024-25 season. The reigning Western and Eastern Conference winners will play twice during the upcoming campaign. Dallas will host the Celtics on January 25 in their first head-to-head meeting. The Mavericks will then travel to Boston on February 6.

Perhaps Kidd’s comments will resurface ahead of the games. Both the Mavericks and Celtics will attempt to stay focused and eliminate distractions, though.