Following their first-round defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers, star swingman Jaylen Brown made headlines in the basketball world. Instead of offering encouragement to his team, Brown sparked widespread confusion by claiming it was his personal favorite season (despite his team being eliminated early in the playoffs).
The comments alone were enough to raise some eyebrows, but things took a more serious turn when reports claimed that Brown was growing frustrated with the Celtics. While both sides have tried to downplay the drama, it hasn’t done much to dispel the sense that change is coming to the organization. In the latest update from Brian Windhorst, he explained that while Brown may not be forcing his way out, the Celtics might have to consider a trade anyway for one primary reason: money.
“I never took what Jaylen said about enjoying this season the wrong way. I felt that he was not talking about getting free of Jayson Tatum,” said Windhorst on SiriusXM NBA Radio. “It can be a refreshing year, and not be him saying, ‘Boy, do I want out of here.’ But, I think, in general, the Celtics are at an interesting point where they have to evaluate their roster, and decide: is Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum together, earning $600 million on their contract, the way to go forward in the league, in the apron era, to have everything tied up in two players that are so similar? Not because one guy wants his own team, not because one guy wants out of there, not because one guy wants extra shots. From a basketball team-building strategic standpoint, does that make sense? That’s what the Celtics have to analyze.”
Tatum and Brown have been teammates since 2017, and there was never a point where the Celtics were serious about splitting them up. After Tatum’s Achilles tear in 2025, however, Jaylen Brown’s role was elevated (28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game in 2025-26), and things haven’t been the same since. Now, following their latest playoff failure, the calls for change are growing, and Brown’s recent antics have not helped his case.
For the Celtics, however, the biggest reason for splitting Tatum and Brown has nothing to do with how they get along. With Tatum on the second year of a five-year, $314 million contract, he’s already taking up a massive chunk of the payroll. Brown isn’t too far behind, being in the middle of a five-year, $285 million deal. Together, that’s at least $600 million in salary, and that’s a massive hit to their cap space.
Ultimately, if the Celtics want to build up the supporting cast and pursue notable free agents, their best bet would be to trade either Tatum or Brown to maintain financial flexibility and fill out the roster with quality role players. In the modern NBA, depth is everything, and having all your money tied down to two stars (one of whom is coming off an Achilles injury) is not a recipe for success. That’s why over the next few weeks, the Celtics will have to make some tough decisions about who stays and who goes. In the process, they could end up looking like an entirely different team.
