The Boston Celtics have traded away their former Finals MVP, Jaylen Brown, to the Philadelphia 76ers for a 36-year-old Paul George, two future first-round picks, and two second-round picks.
According to Jeff Goodman, a sports analyst of the Field of 68 media network, an NBA GM, who has been allowed to remain anonymous, made a harsh prediction on the Celtics’ season.
“This was highway robbery. I have no idea what Brad Stevens was thinking. The Celtics will be lucky to get in the play-in next year,” quoted Goodman on X.
Earlier, the NBA Insider Chris Haynes said the Celtics feel like they have come out on top of this trade in terms of the business side of the transaction.
“This was their super move, and they feel really good about how they positioned themselves. They like the structure of their roster moving into next season,” said Haynes on NBA TV’s The Association.
So it was not Jaylen Brown who requested the trade after being involved in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, as several sources claimed he was frustrated, which led to speculations. But it was the Celtics’ front office that wanted to offload Jaylen Brown in a trade.
Despite what Brad Stevens publicly said about his relationship with Brown, reports have now surfaced that it was Stevens who seemed to have had enough of Jaylen Brown’s polarizing personality.
“He’s also polarizing, thoughtful, well-spoken, outspoken, expensive, and had apparently fallen so out of favor with Brad Stevens and the rest of Boston’s front office that he was traded for relative pennies on the dollar,” wrote Tony Jones of The Athletic.
Stephen A. Smith indicated otherwise. He still believes the Celtics traded Jaylen Brown to appease him as they knew in their “heart of hearts” that Brown was not happy in Boston.
Former Celtics player Antoine Walker feels that the ownership forced the front office to make this trade for business reasons and has nothing to do with what Brown does on the court.
The Celtics were reportedly looking for an elite big man and have signed Mitchell Robinson to a three-year deal as a result. Therefore, they don’t seem to have any major moves planned in free agency and might go into next season with this current roster.
In my opinion, the Celtics may benefit greatly from this trade in the long term, but I cannot see them as the short-term winners of this trade. They traded away a player who was the MVP candidate on the team last season, finishing sixth in the voting behind five of the best players in the league, for an aging veteran who is nowhere close to how explosive and lethal he was in his prime.
Brown finished last season averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists while shooting 47.7% from the field and 34.7% from behind the three-point line. Meanwhile, George averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists while going 43.9% from the field and 39.2% from beyond the arc.
Evidently, the Celtics have taken a step down in terms of the talent they have available on the roster. Moreover, a whole new roster run by Jayson Tatum, who is returning from a potentially career-altering injury, is not the best win-now decision by the Celtics.
They will not just face chemistry issues, but also do not seem to be anywhere close to being as good as they were in their championship-winning season. But anything can happen in this league.
It will certainly be interesting to see what the Celtics’ president, Brad Stevens, and coach Joe Mazzulla have planned for this roster next season. If anyone can convert this roster into a winning team, it is Mazzulla. So it remains to be seen if the Celtics can recover from this position.
