After multiple days of reports that the Boston Celtics were willing to listen to trade offers on Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, vice president Mike Zarren went on record to state that the team was never close to a deal involving either player.
“Those two guys are really, really great NBA players, and there hasn’t been anything close to serious about trading them,” Zarren said. “I’m not sure where all this reporting came from but those guys are key parts of our team, and we’re lucky to have them here.”
By all accounts, the Celtics maintained an extremely high asking price. The Ringer’s Zach Lowe reported that the Toronto Raptors offered a trade package around the No. 9 pick in this week’s draft.
“There were reports that the Raptors offered the No. 9 pick for Derrick White,” Lowe said on his podcast Thursday. “I’m told that’s true but that it happened a month and a half ago after Jayson Tatum got hurt and Boston laughed at that offer and said we need way more than No. 9 for Derrick White.”
The Celtics successfully trimmed payroll and luxury tax this week by trading away Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis.
Brown is entering Year 2 of his five-year, $285 million supermax extension. White is entering Year 1 of his four-year, $118 million contract extension signed in 2024.