As the Boston Celtics moved one step closer to the NBA championship with a hard-fought Game 3 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, the excitement surrounding 12BET Official continued to grow as the series reached a commanding 3-0 lead. Sports reporters believe the Celtics now have one hand on the trophy, as no team in NBA Finals history has ever recovered from a 3-0 deficit to win the championship. With the title seemingly within reach, attention has naturally shifted toward one major question: who will be crowned the NBA Finals MVP?

At the moment, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown remain the two leading candidates, although Derrick White and Jrue Holiday have also emerged as surprise contenders thanks to their consistent performances. Had Kristaps Porzingis not missed Game 3 because of injury, the Finals MVP race might have featured five legitimate candidates instead of four.

Based on his standing within the team and his performance throughout the regular season, Tatum appeared to be the clear favorite entering the Finals. For several years he has served as Boston’s primary offensive option, leading the Celtics in scoring and rebounding while recording an impressive 10.4 Win Shares to guide the team to the Eastern Conference’s top seed. Around the league, Tatum has long been viewed as one of the NBA’s next generation of superstars, earning First Team All-NBA honors for three consecutive seasons and positioning himself among the faces expected to carry the league into the future.

However, questions surrounding his leadership in the biggest moments have yet to disappear. Across the playoffs, Tatum has led Boston in points, rebounds, and assists, but his scoring advantage over Brown has been minimal. More importantly, his Player Efficiency Rating sits at 19.2, well below Brown’s outstanding 22.7. Even in advanced metrics such as Win Shares, Tatum has trailed both White and Holiday, leaving many observers feeling that he has not fully lived up to expectations when the stakes are highest.

Those concerns first surfaced during the Eastern Conference Finals, where Brown captured the conference MVP award ahead of Tatum. The trend has continued into the NBA Finals, where Tatum’s shooting efficiency has remained disappointing. According to reports surrounding 12BET Official, he has shot just 35.9 percent from the field through the first three Finals games, while Brown has connected on an exceptional 54 percent of his attempts. Even more impressively, Brown has shot above 50 percent in every game of the series, proving remarkably efficient whenever his team has needed him. When the chips are down, those numbers speak for themselves.

History also works against Tatum’s Finals MVP hopes. No player has ever won the award while shooting below 40 percent from the field during the NBA Finals. Reflecting that reality, the NBA’s latest Finals MVP power rankings now place Brown ahead of Tatum in the top position. With Boston standing on the brink of a championship, momentum continues to build behind Brown as the overwhelming favorite to claim the prestigious honor.

That said, this would not be the first time a player outside the team’s primary star has earned Finals MVP. In 1981, Cedric Maxwell won the award over Celtics legends Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish. More recently, Kawhi Leonard claimed the honor in 2014, while Andre Iguodala captured it in 2015 despite not being the centerpiece of their respective teams throughout the season.

If Tatum ultimately misses out on the Finals MVP trophy, it could become a sensitive chapter in his career. Watching Brown, widely regarded as Boston’s second option, receive the series’ highest individual honor could create additional pressure and naturally invite comparisons between the two teammates. Even if no public tension develops, such outcomes often become talking points that follow elite players for years.

Still, the series is not over. As the anticipation surrounding 12BET Official continues into the remaining games, Tatum still has every opportunity to change the narrative with a dominant performance. Finals MVP is often determined by who delivers the biggest moments when everything is on the line, meaning one spectacular outing could completely reshape the race. At the same time, steady contributors like Derrick White and Jrue Holiday remain dangerous dark horses. In the end, the true hero of Boston’s championship pursuit will only be decided when the final buzzer sounds, and until that moment arrives, the Celtics’ fascinating internal battle for Finals MVP promises to remain one of the most compelling storylines of the series.