If Jaylen Brown Really Wants Out, It Just Might Be a Blessing for the Boston Celtics
If the Boston Celtics can beat the Detroit Pistons on Friday, they’ll have their biggest win streak of the season at four games. That’s a big deal for a team that’s struggled to get above the .500 mark all year. As the team has put together its mini-streak, a report has come out that Jaylen Brown could ask for a trade should Boston remain at the mediocre level. Should that be the case, it might be the break the Celtics need.
Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics have had a disappointing season
The Celtics are two seasons removed from reaching the Eastern Conference Finals. Since getting eliminated by the Miami Heat in 2020, the team has regressed. After finishing a disappointing 36-36 last year and getting bounced from the playoffs in the first round, they find themselves hovering around .500 again.
With two young All-Stars in Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, mediocrity won’t be tolerated in Boston. With the trading deadline a week away, the Celtics are expected to be a player.
Just how big a player remains to be seen.
Brown, Tatum, and the rest of the Celtics have had it tough. Marcus Smart publicly called out the two stars earlier this season for not passing the ball.
“Every team knows we’re trying to go to Jayson and Jaylen,” he said, according to CLNS Media. “Every team is programmed and studied to stop Jayson and Jaylen. I think everybody’s scouting report is to make those guys pass the ball. They don’t want to pass the ball.
“There’s only so much I can do without the ball in my hands and just stand in the corner. We’re running plays for our best players and every team knows that. They do a great job of shutting that down. When they shut that down, we can’t keep trying to go to those guys.”
Effort on the court has also been questioned. Boston sits in ninth place in the Eastern Conference at 28-25.
There’s been a report that Jaylen Brown may want out if things don’t improve
Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com recently reported that multiple sources said Brown might want to move on if the “mix isn’t right” and the Celtics don’t play to their potential.
The Celtics are playing their best basketball of the year now, but don’t be fooled by their modest three-game win streak. They are still 28-25 and 64-61 in the regular season since they were ousted by the Heat in the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals.
Brad Stevens has made it clear the team has no intention of breaking up their two young stars. Bulpett, however, reports that the Celtics are “listening to ALL offers” ahead of the Feb. 10 deadline.
He reported that the asking price for Brown would be astronomical, with one team executive saying, “Who knows if we ever get a real chance to trade for a player like that? But if you do, you’d better be ready to move fast.”
Losing Brown could be a blessing for the Celtics
The Celtics should be open to dealing Brown. That’s not to say they should have him on the trading block, but they should be willing to listen.
Three times this year, the Celtics have won three straight. They happen to be riding a three-game run now, and hope is rising once again in Boston. If fans are excited because of a three-game win streak, you know the team isn’t performing well overall. That’s been the case for two years in Boston.
If the asking price for Brown is astronomical, and teams are willing to pull the trigger on a deal for him, why wouldn’t the Celtics make the move?
The Tatum/Brown era may be past its prime. Something isn’t clicking if they are 64-61 since the end of the 2020 season. Maybe they just don’t gel. Maybe they are two talented players, who simply don’t work well together.
If what Bulpett reports is true, the Celtics should listen now for any offer regarding Brown. If he decides he wants out after this season, the return on him won’t be nearly as high.
The Celtics need to make some type of move to elude mediocrity. If Brown, indeed, is contemplating leaving, maybe that’s the move they need to make. It would most certainly bring back a proven star, and maybe the Celtics could finally get over the hump.
