Getty Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics
Now that Kevin Durant has reportedly rescinded his trade request from the Brooklyn Nets, Jaylen Brown will remain with the Boston Celtics. In light of the news that Brown will be sticking around until further notice, popular Celtics YouTuber Tomek Kordylewski tweeted out a reel of Brown’s highlight plays during the 2022 NBA Playoffs.
Kordylewski’s caption for the tweet read, “In honor of some things staying put in Brooklyn… here are some of Jaylen Brown’s best plays from this year’s playoffs.”
In honor of some things staying put in Brooklyn …
… here are some of Jaylen Brown’s best plays from this year’s playoffs:
It appears Brown took notice of the tweet as he clicked the like button on Kordylewski’s highlight reel of him. Kordylewski publicly addressed this while expressing his admiration and gratitude for Brown’s efforts on the Celtics.
Brown liking Kordylewski’s reel – along with the caption referencing the trade rumors involving Brown – may very well indicate that the young Celtics star is happy that he is staying with the team. Especially since he was one of the team’s most important contributors during their first NBA Finals run since 2010.
After the Kevin Durant trade rumors were put to rest, Celtics’ President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens made it clear that the team sees Brown as a long-term fixture in Boston.
Stevens Comments on Brown’s Potential Extension
Stevens went on the radio show “Merloni, Fauria, and Mego” to talk about the rumors involving Brown and Durant. When discussing Brown’s future with the Celtics, Stevens made one thing clear – the team wants to keep Brown long-term.
“He is a huge core piece of what we’re doing and has been for six years now. We’re excited to hopefully put our best foot forward to have him here for a long time.”
Brad on potential to offer Jaylen extension in October: “He is a huge core piece of what we’re doing and has been for six years now. We’re excited to hopefully put our best foot forward to have him here for a long time.”
Stevens also made it clear that, while he hopes fans were entertained by the rumors, there haven’t been many trade discussions on the Celtics’ end since the Malcolm Brogdon trade.
”We’re excited to move forward with our team, and that’s really been our focus for a while. You say it’s been busy, and there’s been a lot of talk but it hasn’t been from me. Hopefully, it gave everyone something to talk about. It’s been pretty quiet on our front for a while now.”
All indications are that the Celtics want to keep Brown long-term. Stevens made that clear during his radio appearance on “Merloni, Fauria, and Mego.” Head Coach Ime Udoka also went on the show to echo what Stevens had already said.
Udoka Explained the Trade Rumors
On Udoka’s appearance in “Merloni, Fauria, and Mego,” he explained how and what the Celtics communicated to the players once the Durant rumors started circulating in July.
“We have a lot of guys whose names have come up over the years,” Udoka said. “With us, we reiterate how important they are to us, and we all see these guys in the summer anyway but also let them know that a lot of these rumors that come up are leaked by people with specific agendas.”
Udoka added that when calling about the availability of a player with the reputation that Kevin Durant does, the opposite side will naturally inquire about the best players on your team.
“If a name like Kevin Durant comes up, a high-level player like that, people are naturally going to ask about your best players,” Udoka said. “Jayson, Jaylen, Marcus, those names always tend to come up. We let them know how much we value them, and these things are often leaked, and nothing is going to come of it.”
Those three won’t have to worry about that now that Durant has taken back his trade request for the time being. Although, the Celtics may have to revisit those conversations if Durant requests a trade again.