The Boston Celtics quickly began what could be a busy offseason that will include trade speculation surrounding Jaylen Brown.
After losing Jayson Tatum to an Achilles tear, the Celtics face a crossroads entering 2025-26. They indicated their mindset by trading All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
ESPN insider Shams Charania told Stephen A. Smith that the Holiday deal represented “the start of a very active offseason.” Charania said they were speaking to multiple teams about moving Kristaps Porzingis. Shortly after the podcast appearance, Charania broke a three-team deal sending Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks, with Boston landing Atlanta Hawks forward Georges Niang and a second-round pick.
Charania said the Celtics “prefer not to trade” Brown and Derrick White. However, several teams have shown “significant interest” in Brown, who signed a five-year, $304 million supermax contract before the 2023-24 season.
“The contract is steep. I understand it,” Charania told Smith. “But listen, there are teams, especially in today’s NBA … You’re trying to make a swing. And I think what we’re going to see now, in both conferences, is a lot of activity.”
Acquiring Brown would undoubtedly constitute a big swing. The four-time All-Star is coming off a season in which he averaged 22.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game.
Brown has four more years under contract, so Boston may hope Tatum returns strong to re-form a dynamic duo that netted the organization an NBA title last year.
Charania isn’t the only ESPN insider to ponder a Brown blockbuster. On Tuesday morning’s Get Up, Brian Windhorst questioned whether the Celtics could receive a significant return because of the 2024 Finals MVP’s bloated salary.
“This is the new reality in the NBA,” Windhorst said. “Is Jaylen Brown an excellent player? Yes. Absolutely. Is he a $300 million player? That’s where you get into some things. And so, when you look at Jaylen Brown, a player who’s just had knee surgery — they think he’s going to be back and be fine — who makes $300 million, I’m not sure the value is there for the Celtics, even if they wanted to trade him.”
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