The Boston Celtics were quite busy on Wednesday. While they made a pair of signings in free agency, the move everyone is talking about is the Jaylen Brown trade. After weeks of speculation, the C’s finally unloaded Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Paul George and a slew of draft picks.
Considering Boston’s reported high asking price for Brown, the return for him was less-than-stellar in the eyes of fans, leading many folks to wonder why the team would pull the trigger on this deal. According to one team insider, it sounds like there was one main reason why the Celtics decided to send Brown packing.
Report: Celtics Were Sick of Jaylen Brown’s Antics
Even though he is coming off the best individual season of his career (28.7 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 5.1 APG, 47.7 FG%), Brown’s name had popped up in trade rumors quite a bit early on this offseason. He was floated in Boston’s offer for Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, but they ultimately ended up accepting the Miami Heat’s deal for him instead.
That left Brown in a precarious position with the team moving forward. This wasn’t the first time the front office had shopped Brown, but all signs pointed to the team actually dealing him. Of course, it wasn’t a stretch to suggest that the two sides could mend fences, but that never ended up happening.
Instead, Boston was intent on moving on from Brown, and the end result was a disappointing haul from the Sixers. While various debates have been held recently about Brown’s true value, according to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated, the main reason the team decided to get rid of the 2024 NBA Finals MVP was that it was sick of his off-court antics.
“Brown’s frequent Twitch streams caused some headaches in Boston’s front office and his claim that last season was his favorite—besting, you know, the 2024 run that ended in a championship—didn’t go over well with the fan base,” Mannix wrote. “Behind the scenes there was plenty of grumbling about Brown’s desire to be viewed as a basketball equal to Jayson Tatum.”
Did the Celtics Make the Right Move with Their Jaylen Brown Trade?
GettyJaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics
On the surface, the Celtics have become undeniably worse off as a result of trading Brown from an on-court talent perspective. But if he was causing problems for the team behind the scenes, does that justify the lackluster return? It’s tough to say, and it will depend on what moves Boston makes next, in addition to how Brown fares with his new 76ers team.
The overarching problem, though, is that this Celtics team, which is intent on contending for titles, is not as good as it was at this time yesterday. This is a huge gamble for the front office, and it’s clear that, if it wants to maximize Jayson Tatum’s championship window, more moves need to be made moving forward. So while this deal is huge in its own right, it’s clear that the C’s still have a lot more work to do this offseason.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Celtics Insider Shares Main Reason for Unpopular Jaylen Brown Trade appeared first on HEAVY.