In 2024 the Boston Celtics were on top of the world. They’d just won the title, in large part to Finals MVP Jaylen Brown’s efforts, and seemed poised to dominate the east for years to come with their duo of Brown and Jayson Tatum. Fast forward to July 2026 and Brown is no longer even on the roster. So where did it go wrong?
To begin, one has to ask whether the deal actually makes Boston better on paper. The full trade will see the Celtics receive Paul George, two first-round picks (2028, 2031) and two second-round selections (2028, 2030). According to reports, the picks Boston will receive have the following stipulations:
• The 2028 first-round pick could convert from a first to a swap that is more favourable to Boston
• The 2031 selection is an unprotected Philadelphia first
• The 2028 second-round pick is the most favourable of the Warriors, Thunder and Bucks
• The 2030 second-rounder is the most favourable of the Wizards, Trail Blazers and Suns
Few fans in Philadelphia will complain about the deal as they’ll now feature a “Big 4” of Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown, and Joel Embiid. Barring a slew of injuries, the 76ers are almost guaranteed to finish better than the 7th place showing they had in 2025-26.
But can Boston make a similar claim? After surprising the league with a 56-26 record last year (despite missing Tatum for a good chunk of that), it’s hard to envision them fending off Philadelphia, New York, and perhaps even Toronto if Kawhi can stay healthy with their current roster.
While the club added size in Mitchell Robinson, what’s a realistic expectation out of a 36 year old Paul George at this point? Since the start of the decade, between injuries and suspensions, George has suited up for 48, 54, 31, 56, 74, 41, and 37 games since the 2019-2020 campaign. That’s less than 60% of the games his teams have played.
While he’s still hovering around 20 points per game for his career, he’s no longer the top tier two-way player he was during his time in Indiana and OKC. Picks are nice, but they do very little to help a Boston Celtics team that would have been a favourite to come out of the East at most sports books compete in 2026-27 like they would have if they had kept Brown in the fold.
The move feels very much like the team painted itself into a corner when news that they were in on Giannis Antetokounmpo leaked earlier this summer. Rather than try to smooth things over with Brown however, the team seemed to double down on the fact that he was available behind the scenes but were hesitant to proclaim it publicly.
Why they chose to do so is anyone’s guess, and almost assuredly there will be some kind of “turmoil behind the scenes” piece written about Brown’s final months in Boston at some point. But either say you’re trading him, or don’t. Why shrink the potential market for a deal?
It’s not as if Brown had never been linked to trade rumours before. And both sides had weathered those storms. But for some reason, the front office felt compelled to deal a player who guided them through an injury plagued season to a 2nd seed finish, rather than mend fences.
Comparing the haul that the Clippers received for Kawhi Leonard (and older, far more injury prone player) to what Boston got to send a 5x All Star to a division rival, and things get even more confounding still.
Even if you were to assume that perhaps things weren’t as rosy inside the Celtics locker room as you would think, and that Brown’s mercurial disposition played a key factor in that, why did they not trade him last summer? Would it not have made more sense to tank without Tatum, get a top draft pick THIS YEAR, and likely get even more in return for a (then) 28 year old star?
For a team that fans sometimes complained was too reliant on 3 point shooting, and wasn’t aggressive enough in their attempts to get to the rim the last few seasons, doesn’t George move the needle in the opposite direction? If anything, the one area you can point to where George was a better player than Brown in was from beyond the arc. With the way this team is currently constructed, Boston appears ready to truly live and die by the 3-ball in 2026-27.
And perhaps they’re alright with that, for whatever reason. But all things considered, this will likely be a trade that’s discussed for years to come, and history suggests it won’t be Boston who look like the winners in the near future.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: Keith Allison. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.