Celtics trading Jaylen Brown option takes a turn after Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday deals
The Boston Celtics have been active in the trade market. Jrue Holiday is gone. Kristaps Porzingis is gone.
Could Jaylen Brown be next?
Never say never, but the Celtics have officially set out to do what they did this offseason. They’re out of the restrictive second apron portion of the salary cap.
At this point, a Brown trade would be all about intent. If the Celtics truly believe they’re better off with a different look than the one Brown provides, then maybe they still explore a trade for him.
But the main Brown takeaway from the past few days is this: The Celtics don’t have to do anything with Brown now.
At this point, it’d frankly be a surprise if they did.
Brown and Jayson Tatum finally built their partnership into a 2024 NBA title. Tatum will be out for next season with his torn Achilles, but when he’s back, he and Brown are still a strong tandem.
The highly paid Brown is also very capable of carrying the Celtics with Tatum out in the season ahead.
Brown and new acquisition Anfernee Simons form a great perimeter unit with Derrick White and bench dynamo Payton Pritchard.
The Celtics are a bit short on size without Porzingis, but barring a crazy deal for Giannis Antetokounmpo, there isn’t a ton of obvious size available that would make any sense in a Brown swap.
At this point, the Celtics seem likely to stick with the guy they know very well.
For a year, this looks like it’ll be Brown’s team. And that can still be a very, very good hoops squad.