The Kevin Durant for Jaylen Brown trade rumors surrounding the Boston Celtics continue to have everyone inserting their two cents on the matter.
Jackie MacMullan, longtime ESPN writer and “Around the Horn” panelist, was the latest to chime in when she appeared on NBC Sports Boston’s “Early Edition” program on Wednesday.
“I would think long and hard about pulling that trigger on that deal,” MacMullan told host Trenni Kusnierek. “Not because Kevin Durant’s 34, but also because of his injury history and more importantly, because of his inability to be happy wherever he goes. I mean, he was in the perfect situation at Golden State, and that wasn’t it. And then he literally hand-tailored his own dream team in Brooklyn, and now he wants to walk away from that.”
Brown saw significant growth last season. The six-year veteran, now 25, led the offensive charge in Boston’s NBA Finals appearance against the Golden State Warriors, averaging 23.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists — shooting 43.1% from the field, 34% from three and 80.6% from the line. Brown, in his debut finals appearance, finished second in minutes played (233) for the Celtics and first in field goals made (50).
MacMullan added: “What I don’t know is, are the Celtics concerned that when Jaylen Brown’s two years are up, he’d be foolish to sign the extension now? That’s obvious. So that means he’s gonna get to free agency and does the Celtics front office, and this is hypothetical… do they have concerns going forward that they might not be able to re-sign him? Does he have it in his head that he wants to be a No. 1 and doesn’t wanna be in the shadow of Jayson Tatum?”
The start of the Celtics’ quest to defend their Eastern Conference title and reappear in the NBA Finals is approaching with preseason games officially scheduled on Wednesday.
