Celtics' Brown 'grateful' to receive MVP endorsement from LeBron

LeBron James gave Jaylen Brown a ringing endorsement for MVP after the Boston Celtics forward dropped a game-high 32 points in Sunday's 111-89 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.

When Brown was informed of James' postgame comments, the Celtics star was blown away.

"It's an honor to play in the Celtics-Lakers rivalry," Brown told reporters, including Forbes' Bobby Krivitsky. "It's an honor for LeBron, who's arguably the best player to ever play the game, giving me some high praise. So, I'm just grateful.

"I wake up every morning grateful (and) humbled in the position I'm able to be in, and I come out and put my best foot forward every single day."

Brown has taken charge for the Celtics in the absence of co-star Jayson Tatum. The five-time All-Star entered Sunday's play averaging a career-high 29.2 points, which ranks fourth in the NBA.

The 29-year-old is also tallying seven boards, 4.8 assists, and one steal per contest across 50 appearances. He's sixth in the league in triple-doubles (three) and 16th in total free throws (268).

Brown is a multi-positional defender, too, and is often tasked with shutting down the opposition's top perimeter threat.

"He's playing great basketball. ... This whole MVP thing, I don't understand why his name is not getting talked about," James told reporters, including ESPN's Dave McMenamin.

Boston sits second in the East with a 37-19 record following Sunday's win. They've won three games in a row and trail the top-seeded Detroit Pistons by 5.5 games.