Mavericks coach Jason Kidd calls Jaylen Brown, not Jayson Tatum, the Celtics’ ‘best player’

BOSTON – Raising the eyebrows of assembled media Saturday afternoon, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said Jaylen Brown – and not the more decorated Jayson Tatum – was the Celtics’ “best player.”

Asked after Dallas’ practice about what is “challenging” playing against Brown in the NBA Finals, Kidd paused, smirked and said, “Umm, well Jaylen is their best player, so just looking at what he does defensively, he picked up Luka (Dončić) full court, he got to the free-throw line, he did everything.

“That’s what your best player does.”

Brown scored a team-high 22 points in Boston’s 107-89 win in Game 1 and added six rebounds, three blocks and three steals. He attempted 11 free throws but only made six.

Perhaps Kidd doesn’t place a premium on making those shots, only taking them. Tatum, meanwhile, scored 16 points with 11 rebounds but shot 6 of 16 from the floor in Game 1.

At any rate, with Game 2 on Sunday at TD Garden, a discussion the Celtics don’t particularly like was reintroduced by the opposing coach.

“They just need to focus on the truth,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said about his top two players. “At the end of the day, nobody knows because they’re not in the locker room.”

“We understand that people try to drive a wedge between us,” Tatum said. “I guess that’s a smart thing for Jason to try to do. But we’ve been in this position for many years, of people trying to divide us, say that one of us should be traded and one’s better than the other. So it’s not the first time.”

“It’s a team game, and we’re trying to focus on that, and, you know, everybody has their own opinions,” Brown added.

Tatum and Brown have been paired together dating back to the 2016-17 season. Tatum, 26, is a five-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA first-teamer, and a 23.1-points-per-game scorer over his career. He will play in his second Olympics this summer and is eligible for a contract extension worth more than $300 million.

Brown, 27, has made three All-Star teams and one All-NBA selection (second team). He is averaging 18.6 points for his career, and last summer was awarded what at the time was the largest contract extension in NBA history – five years and $304 million.

Brown felt he was snubbed from not making any All-NBA teams this season, and just days after learning he didn’t make it, was surprised when five of nine media panelists voted him over Tatum as Eastern Conference finals MVP. The vote led to a discussion on NBA media programming that seemed to pit Brown and Tatum against each other, to which the Celtics took offense.

Tatum said he and Brown have had private discussions about outside attempts to divide them.

“We’ve been just extremely focused on what our roles and our jobs are,” Brown said. … “We have all had to sacrifice, Jayson has had to do that at the highest levels, and I respect him and tip my cap for it. But right now at this point, it’s whatever it takes.”

Perhaps he was just sharing his honest opinion, but Kidd, an NBA lifer who has two NBA championship rings, knows how to play the game.

“He plays both sides, defense and offense, at a high rate and he’s been doing that the whole playoffs,” Kidd said of Brown. “You talk about Eastern Conference finals MVP, and he seems like he’s continued to pick up where he left off.”

Boston’s oldest player, Al Horford (age 38), smiled when asked about Kidd’s tactic.

“Jason Kidd … I see what he’s doing. I see what he’s doing.

“Jaylen is an unbelievable player,” Horford added. “An unbelievable player.”

The Athletic’s Tim Cato contributed to this story.