From outside the Celtics organization, it’s easy to see why Brad Stevens called up his counterpart Sean Marks with the Nets. and talked about some form of Kevin Durant trade. It’s Kevin “Freakin” Durant: MVP, two-time Finals MVP, one of the best scorers in history. put it to the side Jayson Tatum with solid role players around him and the Celtics become the clear favorites for the title. From the outside, if you’re from the Celtics, of course you explore the trade and of course you consider jaylen brown as the centerpiece of any agreement. We’re talking about KD, who even at 34 is one of the top three players in the world (when he’s healthy). And that may be undervaluing it.
Within the Celtics organization, it’s not such an easy decision. There are potential consequences.
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— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) July 25, 2022
Brown has been loyal to the Celtics, but he’s heard his name in trade talks before, always for elite players like Kawhi Leonard either anthony davis, but his name still appears. However, that doesn’t mean Brown wants out of Boston. Just the opposite, reports Jared Weiss in The Athletic.
Despite all the hiccups in Brown’s relationship with the fan base, he’s still committed to Boston. When WEEI’s Jermaine Wiggins claimed Brown told him he would not re-sign in Boston when his contract expires in 2024, Brown was perplexed and denied the report behind closed doors, sources familiar with Brown’s thinking told The Athletic. Despite the trade talks, Brown wants to be in Boston.
Last June’s trip to the Finals felt like Brown and Tatum, and the rest of the core of the young Celtics, took notice and started to peak. It’s been a roller coaster ride to this point, but for Celtics fans, it finally feels like the years of emotional investment are paying off.
Then came this snap back to reality: The NBA always comes first in business.
Which leaves it up to Stevens, Ime Udoka and Celtics management to make sure this rumor doesn’t sever their relationship with Brown, who may become a free agent in two years. Most likely, this exchange will not happen, since Weiss notes in The Athletic.
In the wake of [Shams] Charania’s report, several league sources who spoke with the athletic they believe the Nets are looking to boost the market and avoid the buzz of Durant’s absence from training camp.
Should the Celtics go all-in on a Durant trade?
Brown being a free agent in 2024 is a key decision point for that question. Logistical issues aside, Brown isn’t going to sign a contract extension with the Celtics before then because he now has a non-maximum deal and CBA rules limit how big an extension the Celtics can give him. agreement. Bottom line: Brown would earn more than $7 million more in his first season alone by becoming a free agent and re-signing in Boston than he could through an extension, and those additional earnings are compounded by future raises over time. length of the contract. (The exception is if Brown makes an All-NBA team, then the extension rules change and Boston could make a max deal.)
Despite some reports to the contrary, league sources NBC Sports spoke with expect Brown to re-sign in Boston in 2024, but added that everyone was going to monitor the situation because two years is a long time and things can change. Especially if a player’s name keeps coming up in business conversations and they don’t feel loved.
With Brown and Tatum, the Celtics’ championship window could be extended by at least five years and maybe years longer. With Durant at 34, even if he ages well (and there have been a lot of injury problems in the last three years), the Celtics’ championship window is more like two, maybe three years. However, that window is more open. Win-now coaches and executives lean toward the win-now model (you never know what the future holds).
There are a lot of questions here for Stevens and Boston: How far would they go to make a trade work? they would put smart marcus in the mix? How many draft picks would they throw away? Do you think last season’s run to the Finals is repeatable or that they had too many layoffs?
But one of those key questions is how they keep their relationship with Brown strong.