BOSTON — Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown’s relationship has been scrutinized for much of the past decade. The conversation has only intensified in recent weeks, after Brown left a “cap” emoji on a behind-the-scenes Tatum YouTube video about his reaction to the trade.
And, on Sunday,
Both players spoke at length to the media about their relationship this past weekend, Tatum on Friday night and Brown on Saturday.
“I don’t have any animosity or beef or ill will towards him,” Tatum said after the Celtics’
home opener. “The frustrating part is since he’s not on the Celtics anymore, the narrative or conversations haven’t been enough about what we accomplished, all the games we won, winning the championship, how we’ve grown together, right?”
Tatum also made it clear he’d like to talk with his former running mate.
“I reached out to him the day he was traded. I called, I texted,” Tatum said. “I understand people process things differently. At this point in our lives, we’re too old to be having our relationship discussed on the internet. If there’s a conversation to be had, we can definitely have the conversation.”
The next night, after the 76ers win over the Milwaukee Bucks, Brown reacted.
“I didn’t see the full thing, but I saw that he said there’s no beef, and he’s right,” Brown told reporters, per NBC Sports Philadelphia. “There’s no beef. Jayson comes from a wonderful family. We’ve accomplished some great things. He’s a hell of a basketball player. He’s got a great PR team. There’s no beef, but it might be a little lamb chops and some gravy. He should stay ready at all times.”
At Celtics practice on Sunday, Joe Mazzulla reacted to the saga
“Those two guys, they were together for 10 years, and they had great, great moments together,” Mazzulla said. “At the end of the day, nobody is perfect. We all can be better. We all did great things. We all did things that we want to be better at. So, I think it’s more just focusing on the greatness that those two were able to achieve, and the fact that they’re both great people.”
Mazzulla also noted how different Tatum and Brown are.
“They’re different in how they play the game,” he said. “They’re different in how they handle things. They’re just they’re different. It doesn’t mean that it’s good or bad. They’re just different.”
“We’re focused on Jayson because he’s with us,” Mazzulla said. “He plays for us. He’s our guy. We’re grateful for what Jaylen did in the past, but our focus goes to Jayson — who he is as a player, who he is as a person, and we just move on from there. But you never forget the gratitude and the perspective of a former Celtic who has left this place in a better place. You can’t forget that.”
Mazzulla was asked if he’s sad that this is what Brown and Tatum’s relationship has come to.
“It doesn’t necessarily make you sad,” Mazzulla said. “I think that’s just kind of the nature of the space that we’re in. I think you just, you have a choice to decide what we’re going to focus on.
“We make this phrase for every Celtic — once a Celtic, always a Celtic. You left this place better than you found it. You cannot forget that. You have a gratitude and a perspective of that, and then refocus on the present moment. We can’t let a day go by where we don’t focus on Jayson’s greatness, who he is as a player, and what he does for this organization and what he’s done on and off the court. That’s our guy now. So it doesn’t necessarily make you sad. It just forces you to choose what you’re going to focus on, and you have to focus on the gratitude and the perspective of a great former Celtic. And we’re going to choose to focus on the greatness of Jayson and what he’s done for our organization, what he’s continuing to do, and what he is going to do for us.”
