Earlier this summer, it was clear that Brad Stevens had begun shopping Jaylen Brown around the league.
Brown was ultimately traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in return for Paul George and future draft capital. Boston’s fanbase wasn’t pleased with that deal. Not only did the Celtics strengthen a direct rival, but they took back an aging star with a string of injury concerns.
However, Philadelphia’s offer may have been the best on the table. According to ESPN’s Anthony Slater, the Golden State Warriors removed themselves from the running for Brown.
“The Warriors didn’t show an appetite to offer Butler for Anthony Davis or Jaylen Brown this summer, considering the pick packages required and contracts attached to both,” Slater reported. “All other Butler-plus-picks conversations — for what the Warriors believe are ultimately lesser players once Butler returns — were shut down, team sources said.”
Whether it was George or Butler, the return would have been similar. Boston still would have been taking back an aging star with injury concerns. The only difference is that George is healthy to begin the season. Whereas Butler would have been sidelined until the second half of the 2026-27 campaign.
Brown Hinted At Tension After 2024 Finals MVP
In a recent interview, Brown said he was surprised to be named Finals MVP, as the Celtics hoisted the Larry O’Brien trophy in 2024.
“I didn’t play to win an award. When they gave me MVP — they gave me two MVPs, by the way — just for those, you know what I mean,” Brown said. “But when I won, I was never expecting that, I didn’t care nothing about that. … So when I won, I was shocked. You can see it on my face that I was shocked, and it didn’t change [my] reaction if anybody else won.”
Brown then followed up his revelation with a hint that not everyone on the Celtics roster (Jayson Tatum?) was happy about him winning the award.
“But that isn’t always the case when the shoe is on the other foot.”
Brown will undoubtedly look to put his Celtics tenure behind him. His focus is to win his second championship in the upcoming season, albeit with the Sixers.
Celtics Traded Brown For Cap Reasons
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, speaking on a July 17 episode of The Pat McAfee Show, Brown’s impending contract extension was a key factor in the team’s decision to trade their All-Star forward.
“They knew they were not going to offer Jaylen Brown the two-year, $140 million contract extension,” Charania said. “That would have caused a reaction. Both sides would have had to have even harder conversations, and this could have gone another way. This could have gotten ugly potentially because you’ve already shopped the player multiple times. In 2022, he was offered for Kevin Durant.”
Bown will be eligible for an extension with the Sixers next summer. Whether the franchise opts to make him an offer will remain to be seen. Nevertheless, the Celtics’ cap sheet makes a lot more sense as we head into the new season. They’ll be out of the repeater tax next summer, assuming they stay under the luxury tax.
Celtics’ Decision To Send Jaylen Brown To Sixers Gets Clearer