Jaylen Brown is no longer a Boston Celtic, and we’re starting to learn more about why the superstar wing was dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers for such an underwhelming return.
According to ESPN insider Shams Charania, the Celtics made it clear this summer that they would not move forward with the duo of Jayson Tatum and Brown. Teams then called on the availability of both players, though Boston was only willing to entertain trading the latter, which is exactly what they wound up doing on Wednesday night.
“When teams called on Jayson Tatum they were given a complete no, when teams called on Jaylen Brown they were wide open.
The last two years they simply did not get far enough to justify having two supermax contract players moving forward. They already had questions about the fit on a personal level and also eventually on the court, where they just did not have the level of success that they wanted to have. And so they weren’t going to trade Jayson Tatum, so they landed on Jaylen Brown and finally he was moved. The J’s are split,”
The 28-year-old Tatum has four years remaining on the five-year, $315 million supermax extension he signed with the Celtics in 2024. He averaged 21.8 points, 10 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game in 16 appearances after returning from injury last season.
It’s fascinating to hear that teams around the league were also trying to pry Tatum out of Boston, though it makes sense that the Celtics preferred to keep him and trade Brown, which perhaps contributed to the lower return than many expected.
Suitors knew that Boston was going to trade Brown, and the 76ers waited for the asking price to come down before pouncing.
It may not be on the same level as Luka Doncic being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, but Brown heading to Philadelphia for Paul George and draft picks isn’t far behind in terms of shock value.
