Overview
- The NBA named Jalen Brunson the Eastern Conference Player of the Month and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander the Western Conference winner for December on Jan. 2.
- Brown posted “Smh” on X and said on Twitch that neither Brunson nor Gilgeous-Alexander had a better month than he did, asking, “what’s the rubric” for the award.
- In 10 December games, Brown averaged 31.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.4 assists on 53.8% shooting, tied Larry Bird with nine straight 30-point games, and Boston went 9-3 for the month.
- Brunson averaged 30.6 points and 7.1 assists as New York went 10-4 in December, and coverage noted his additional games and NBA Cup MVP as factors in his selection.
- Former Celtic Paul Pierce criticized the outcome in a post defending Brown, Joe Mazzulla was named East Coach of the Month, and there has been no change to the award or further league response.