While he waits for his enormous salary, Jaylen Brown might not be an invincible part of the Boston Celtics’ long-term plans, according to Howard Beck of The Ringer.
The $286.2 million, five-year extension for Brown begins in 2024–2025. In light of this, Beck stated that Boston “will eventually have to confront the financial realities of the new CBA,” indicating that it is not completely impossible that the three-time All-Star will be traded.
An executive from the Western Conference, cited by Beck, predicted that Brown “would set the record for the biggest return” and demand “a Durant-type deal.” That kind of haul, according to him, consists of “multiple first-round picks and swaps, plus high-level rotation players.”
However, Beck issued a warning, saying that “no one is predicting Brown will be moved this summer.”
Over the past few years, there has been some discussion regarding Brown. He was the obvious choice to be included over Jayson Tatum in the event that the Celtics made a blockbuster trade. But settling on that supermax extension seemed to resolve the matter.
There’s also no need to make such a radical move as relocating the 27-year-old, given the team’s performance. According to NBA.com, Boston has the greatest record in the NBA (42-12) and the highest net rating (plus-9.5). Right now, the Celtics have to be regarded as the favourites to win the 2024 championship.
All things considered, Brown’s statistics from the previous season are below average: he scored 22.0 points, pulled down 5.5 rebounds, and his effective field goal percentage of 54.9 percent is comparable to his career average of 54.4.His production doesn’t exactly scream “supermax player,” and his shortcomings have already been shown in the postseason before we’ve even reached it.
It’s possible that Boston may eventually reach a point where it is no longer the best use of its salary cap room to pay Brown almost $60 million a year.
Furthermore, nobody is really sure how roster-building will be affected by the new, more stringent collective bargaining agreement. Perhaps even more of a trend away from loading up on stars at the expense of depth is experienced by the pendulum.
Dealing Brown would allow the Celtics to become less top-heavy without sacrificing his value as a player on the court.
