We Can’t Know How The Kevin Durant Trade Rumors Will Affect Jaylen Brown’s Relationship With The Boston Celtics

In the deadest part of the NBA offseason, speculation rushes in to fill the gaps where there was once actual news. Last week, the basketball world received an unexpected jolt when word leaked out that the Boston Celtics had offered a package centering around Jaylen Brown to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Kevin Durant. When no other reports followed, the focus shifted from Durant’s potential move to Brown’s future in Boston, trade or no trade.

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Now, much of the subsequent fallout came courtesy of Twitter, the birthplace of most instant controversies in 2022. Brown’s reaction to the report—the Celtics had apparently offered him, Derrick White and a first-round draft pick for Durant—was to tweet out “smh,” internet shorthand for “shaking my head.”

It was a clear expression of disapproval, but the exact target wasn’t entirely clear. Was Brown upset that the Celtics may have put his name out there? Was he annoyed that word got out and that this was something he would have to deal with for the foreseeable future? Either reaction would be understandable, frankly.

Maybe that single tweet wouldn’t have had much traction had there been any further news on the Durant front. Instead, Boston Sports Journal’s John Karalis deftly summed up the whole situation as follows, “All of the reporting characterized the Celtics as no closer to a deal for Durant than any other team where talks have stalled and just about everyone acknowledges that the conversation happened well before the report.”

So, in the absence of anything more substantial, Brown’s potential unhappiness has now become a story. Now, this is also somewhat understandable, as an essentially confirmed trade proposal could conceivably make him more likely to leave Boston should he remain on the roster in the meantime.

The problem is that, unless we have a direct connection to Brown, none of us can actually get a true sense of his position. Heck, even if we somehow did, we couldn’t possibly predict how it could impact a free agency decision he won’t have to make until the summer of 2024. A lot can change between then.

Still, in lieu of further developments, some analysts have decided to guess how Brown feels—or should feel—about being offered in a deal for a historically great player. ESPN’s Tim McMahon has all but admonished the Celtics, telling them to “tread lightly” in even discussing such a thing.

Brown hasn’t publicly said anything about the Durant deal after his now semi-infamous tweet. The closest thing to a follow-up came from Boston Herald reporter Mark Murphy, who quoted a source close to Brown saying, “He’s happy and looking forward to coming back… like Kawhi, AD and others on that level, he’s going to be included in every report because of who he is.”

Meanwhile, teammate Jayson Tatum has been out there attempting to put out fires. He’s been diplomatic about the idea of adding Durant to the mix while emphasizing how happy he is with their current roster. “Chemistry is half the battle,” he told NBC Sports Boston, “you can have a great team with great talent, and not necessarily jell well together.” Tatum will be with the team next season no matter what and does not seem eager to plant any seeds of future conflict.

Having been in Boston for the Kyrie Irving debacle, both Tatum and Brown know that we in the media often treat the NBA like one huge soap opera. While it often feels like one, we should also keep in mind that these are real human beings and not fictional characters whose thoughts, feelings and motivations can easily be deduced from the comfort of our living rooms.