Jaylen Brown was a huge part of the Boston Celtics’ run to the NBA Finals in 2022, and there’s no doubt that Brown showed he could be an elite No. 2 option for a Finals team. During the playoffs, Jaylen Brown put up 23.1 PPG, 6.9 RPG, and 3.5 APG while shooting 37.3% from beyond the arc.
Despite the fact that he was a crucial member of the 2022 Celtics Finals team, the Boston Celtics briefly explored trading him for Kevin Durant this summer before the Nets forward rescinded his trade request. At one point, it was revealed that the Celtics offered Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, and a first-round pick for the superstar.
“The Celtics offered Brown, guard Derrick White and a draft pick to the Nets for Durant, sources said. The proposal was rejected, and Brooklyn has asked Boston — in any proposal — to include Brown, Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, draft picks and potentially one more rotation player, those sources added. Currently, the Celtics are less inclined to include Smart along with multiple other player or pick assets, but the franchise is mulling over next steps on how to approach discussions.
Obviously, some star players might have some hard feelings for their franchise and front office if they were included in a blockbuster trade scenario such as this. However, it seems as though that’s not the case with Jaylen Brown.
Jared Weiss Says Jaylen Brown Understands That He Isn’t Untouchable
Celtics insider Jared Weiss has recently joined Michael Scotto of HoopsHype to talk about the Boston Celtics. The insider revealed that Jaylen Brown understands that he’s not untouchable in trades like Jayson Tatum, adding that he knew that the only player the Celtics were considering trading him for this summer was Kevin Durant.
I think Jaylen understands that it’s KD and the only trade candidate or only player they were considering trading him for was Durant. It’s not like it was a Donovan Mitchell situation. I think Jaylen understood why this was happening. I’m not getting the impression he’s playing out his deal and then looking to go elsewhere. I think he’s in a pretty good spot with the organization considering.
There’s an obvious dichotomy here where Jayson Tatum was not in the talks. JT is pretty clearly untouchable. Jaylen isn’t, and he knows that.
It is clear that Jaylen Brown understands that there is a business aspect to the NBA and that he could get traded in a deal for a better player. There a very few truly untouchable players in the league.
Hopefully, we will see Jaylen Brown have a productive year with the Boston Celtics. Perhaps we’ll see the two-way forward take another leap this year, and maybe there’ll be a point in the future when he is considered truly untouchable by the team.
