Just over a month after he was initially traded from the Celtics to Philadelphia, Jaylen Brown was officially introduced as a member of the 76ers on Thursday afternoon.
“I’m excited to just be myself,” Brown said, sitting at the podium of the Francis J. Myers Recreation Center. “I think that’s one thing that I can promise the city and the organization and coaching staff that I’m coming every single day to be myself with my best foot forward. Be with my integrity, my mentality, and be with my capacity
and my ability to win. We’ll figure out the X’s and O’s.”
In his introductory press conference, Brown fielded more than 20 minutes of questions from a press corps that included dozens of Philadelphia reporters, as well as a slew of Boston media members who made the trip to Pennsylvania to watch the longtime Celtic and former Finals MVP turn the page in his illustrious career.
Brown touched on his excitement about the prospect of bringing a title to Philadelphia, and spoke candidly about how crazy of a summer it had been, getting traded to a rival franchise that eliminated the Celtics just a few weeks ago.
He fielded questions about his eagerness to mentor rising sophomore VJ Edgecombe, who will be the youngest standout among a talented pool of stars. He spoke candidly about his excitement about the prospect of learning from LeBron James. And he shared how quickly franchise cornerstones Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid reached out to him after the trade.
But, though Brown’s press conference mostly centered around the 76ers — and the organization’s title aspirations — he also reflected a bit about his Boston tenure.
For one, he was asked which part of the trade process he felt was disrespectful, something he previously stated on the Twitch stream.
“The whole process,” he said.
“But to be honest, my mind is so focused on what’s in front of me. To be honest, I’m moving on. Maybe one day, I’ll share the details and how everything transpired and all the moving parts that took place in this. Obviously, it’s a lot of speculation. I feel no need to chime in on it because I’m focused on what’s important.”
Throughout the press conference, though Brown never mentioned explicitly mentioned the Celtics, he frequently showed appreciation for the decade he spent in Boston.
“I look back at the city of Boston, and I’m grateful,” he said. “I’ve been able to develop as a man, as a human being here.”
“The relationships are still there, so are the connections. I’m very grateful for my ten years in Boston. I have nothing but respect for Boston, but it’s time to move forward.”
Notably, Brown was also asked about his relationship with Jayson Tatum, which has been hotly scrutinized over much of the past decade — and especially over the last weeks in the aftermath of the trade.
“We won a championship together,” Brown said. “So anybody that you win a championship with, that’s what you know a brotherhood or a lifelong legacy would entail. Obviously, just ups and downs in any type of relationship for sure. But on my end, it’s nothing but respect. Besides for when he plays the Sixers, I hope he does well. But other than that, everything for me is just based on respect.”
Brown was also asked if he and Tatum have been able to talk since the trade.
“Not really,” he said.
Jaylen Brown extensively spoke about his desire to win in Philly
Sitting in front of a Philadelphia 76ers backdrop for the first time, Brown has made one thing clear: his top priority is to win.
“My focus is winning,” he said. “Obviously, other people’s focus can be scoring. My focus going into every practice, every meeting, every shootaround, every film session is: how do we win night in and night out? So sometimes that may change, sometimes it may look different, but whatever it takes. At no point, at this point in my career, nothing else has really moved me.
“I don’t care about the outside success. I never did, you know what I mean? I don’t care about the MVP awards or finals MVP. None of that stuff really moves me. It’s nice. The only thing that’s gonna move me is doing something collectively — so a championship. So that’s what I’m looking forward to, trying to start that journey and building towards. But all the other stuff that comes along with it is just a distraction.
The new-look 76ers are loaded with talent. Their expected starting lineup includes a four-time Finals MVP in LeBron James, a Finals MVP in Jaylen Brown, a former MVP in Joel Embiid, a two-time All-Star in Tyrese Maxey, and one of last year’s top rookies in VJ Edgecombe.
Brown was asked about that loaded roster and how the leadership dynamics will be worked out.
“To be honest, it doesn’t have to be anybody’s team,” he said. “It just needs to be based in respect and work, and that’s kind of my approach. I want to earn everybody’s respect and trust, which takes time. Obviously, it’s a lot of guys with talent, egos — but to win, you’ve got to be able to sacrifice.”
Though Brown did admit he threw his phone across the room shortly after news of the trade broke, nearly five weeks later, he sounded at peace with how things played out.
“I’m very grateful for my experience, my team here in Boston; 10 years is a perfect cycle, perfect number for completion,” Brown said. “We won a championship, and I have nothing but respect for the city of Boston. But now it’s time to move forward a little bit.”
