Getty Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics.
In light of multiple reports that the Boston Celtics have discussed trading him to the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant, Jaylen Brown released a tweet on July 25 that only added to the chaos online. In the tweet, Brown relayed a simply three-letter acronym that aroused plenty of speculation on Twitter.
The acronym stands for “shaking my head.” Is Brown more likely than not reacting to the reports about his being potentially traded for Durant. And if so, what is Brown shaking his head about in this case? Is he shaking his head because he can’t believe the Celtics are trying to trade him or is he shaking his head because he knows that the reports aren’t true?
Those on Twitter came to their own conclusions. Dan Greenberg of Barstool Sports certainly let his feelings be known about Brown’s tweet.
Plenty of Celtics fans and media alike tweeted their support for Brown, making it clear that they wanted him in Boston more than anything.
@FCHWPO Jaylen, hang tight man. This too shall pass. This is silly season. No one trusts woj who has an idea of what’s going on. Especially when it comes to marks etc. Stay above the crap bro. You’re not going anywhere.
At least one non-Celtics fans tweeted that Brown’s message signified that the Celtics and Brown had reached a point of no return. Hence, a deal had to be agreed upon between them and the Nets.
But did this tweet even signify anything to begin with? One of the more reliable Celtics beat reporters revealed how Brown felt about Boston after his cryptic tweet.
Brown Reportedly ‘Happy’ in Boston
Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald quoted Brown’s “Smh” tweet on July 25 and offered his source’s perspectives on Brown’s feelings about playing in Boston.
“He loves it in Boston. He was two games away from a championship. He’s happy and looking forward to coming back. … Like Kawhi, AD and others on that level, he’s going to be included in every report because of who he is.”
So it sounds as though, regardless of what he meant by his cryptic tweet, that Brown is happy with where he is at the moment. Brown is only 25 years old yet has already been to the Eastern Conference finals four times in his career and made it to his first NBA Finals appearance in June.
His playoff success alongside Jayson Tatum this early in their careers makes it seem unlikely that someone in his position would be motive to see if the grass is greener on the other side. Besides, it appears the Nets may not be interested in trading Durant to the Celtics.
Nets Prefer Not to Trade Brown to Boston
Even if the reports of the Celtics and the Nets discussing a trade involving Brown and Durant are true, it appears the Nets would not want to trade Durant to Boston because they would be trading him to someone in their own division.
John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM tweeted on July 25 that the Celtics have had interest in trading for Durant since he made his trade request, but because Boston and Brooklyn are division rivals, they’d prefer not to trade Durant to Boston.
Boston has had interest in trading for KD since the Durant trade request and on Friday we reported more on that interest. But I still find it highly unlikely the Nets would trade him to Boston. They prefer not to trade him to a chief rival.
The last time the Nets completed a trade with the Celtics, in 2013, the Nets got Paul Pierce for one year and Kevin Garnett for a year and a half, while Boston wound up getting Brown and Tatum from the deal. The Nets may very well not be interested in potentially getting ripped off by Boston again.