When Jaylen Brown won the NBA’s Eastern Conference finals MVP, the Georgia native was surprised. Veteran Boston Celtics teammate Jrue Holiday, however, was not at all shocked that Brown won the honor given what he has seen from the All-Star wing in this round of the postseason. In fact, that Brown did not see the honor coming was a positive in Holiday’s mind.

“I think it’s even better because he didn’t expect it,” he offered via the Athletic’s Jared Weiss. “That really means that (it) didn’t matter to him. It was about winning and whatever it took, however long it took, that’s what was important.”

“So, I think when you have that mentality and that mindset, and you see great people get rewarded for the things that they do, it just brings joy,” Holiday added.

The shift in focus compared to past playoffs for Brown has been hard to miss, with better shooting, ball control, passing, and decision-making all contributing to what coalesced into Brown’s being so honored by the league.

And it looks sustainable moving into the 2024 NBA Finals. Should it prove to be, a banner may be within Boston’s reach for the first time for more than a decade ago, save those of us who truly believe that 2022 was winnable.

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Story originally appeared on Celtics Wire