In the blink of an eye, the Boston Celtics went from rumored “front runners” in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes to the unknown aftermath of tossing franchise star Jaylen Brown into the spotlight of trade rumors.
Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens was willing to part ways with Brown alongside two future first-round picks, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, before the Miami Heat swooped in and landed the Greek Freak instead. Since then, Stevens expressed his empathy for Brown during
his NBA Draft press conference on Tuesday, acknowledging the national attention the 2024 NBA Finals MVP has drawn in recent weeks.
It’s become a situation the organization itself created. Stevens did his due diligence as the front office’s head honcho by peeking into the cost of bringing Giannis to Boston. That’s fine. The issue is that the Celtics got so deep into the negotiations that they put themselves in a must-win race against Miami. Taking the possible ramifications into consideration should’ve been enough to ensure Antetokounmpo would become a Celtic this offseason.
Yet, while Giannis gets settled in South Beach with Pat Riley and Bam Adebayo, Stevens and the Celtics can only watch as Brown deals with the spotlight that remains on him. The optics of another Boston pursuit with a superstar, in which Brown is the centerpiece of a Celtics offer, don’t bode well for the franchise from an outside perspective.
Last season, Brown did his job — really, really well actually. Even without the assistance of Jayson Tatum for the first 62 games of the season, Brown turned doubt into fuel in two ways: first, by becoming a league MVP finalist and then by turning the unproven Celtics into a 56-win contender. Brown made the ultimate best of Boston’s yard sale last offseason, all without any complaints. He took the likes of Hugo González, Neemias Queta, and Jordan Walsh all under his wing and filled the entire locker room with confidence after their 0-3 start.
Brown led the Celtics to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, turning a roster viewed as a team built to tank into the NBA’s third-best.
At every turn imaginable, whatever the Celtics have needed from Brown, he’s delivered. From coming off the bench as a lottery selection his rookie year, to playing selfless basketball with Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday in exchange for a championship. Brown has always been a team player, despite his vented frustrations throughout the years.
Therefore, it’s time the Celtics do the same in the aftermath of their failed run at acquiring Giannis.
Brown hasn’t escaped the rumor mill. Each day, another report surfaces with all signs pointing toward the Celtics still fielding offers. According to HoopHype’s Michael Scotto, the Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, and Los Angeles Clippers are among those interested in Brown. The New Orleans Pelicans, Houston Rockets, and Orlando Magic, too, had expressed previous interest but are no longer viewed as teams “in the mix.”
Stevens was already weighing enough risk in pursuing Giannis — like durability and committing to Boston — and that was for a two-time MVP. But of the six teams reportedly linked to Brown, including the three no longer viewed as suitors, none bring anything to the table like the Milwaukee Bucks did with Giannis. So realistically, any Brown swap would be a downgrade from what the Celtics could’ve had with Giannis, making the best route simple: clean up whatever feelings may or may not exist with Brown and stand pat.
Trading Brown for a Giannis-like haul headlined by future first-round picks doesn’t help the Celtics get the most out of Tatum’s prime or extend their title window. For the Bucks, it made sense. For the Celtics, it’s a head-scratcher. Boston and Milwaukee are, by no measure, in the same position this offseason. Therefore, the Celtics should operate accordingly.
If Brown is undervalued by the trade market, then there’s no point in parting ways for the sake of avoiding a difficult conversation. Brown has been a member of the Celtics and an invested fixture in Boston’s community for the past decade. Stevens coached him as a rookie and has been by Brown’s side every step of the way throughout his career. This isn’t a Kyrie Irving situation, as there’s a relationship worth going the extra mile to salvage.
Brown and Tatum — at the very least — keep the Celtics competitive when together. That’s the baseline. Depth and playstyle are adjustments that can be made without splitting the two up, so what’s the case for doing so? Unless Brown forces the situation similar to Antetokounmpo’s with Milwaukee, the Celtics are better off staying neutral and signing Brown to the two-year, $142 million extension he’s eligible to ink in July.
It’s up to Stevens to make sure that by the time the Celtics suit up and open the season in October, they do so better than they did last season. For the time being, nothing suggests that trading Brown leads the team to that destination.
