Jaylen Brown wanted some extra time. The Celtics star, understandably, was processing rather a lot.
Moments after the Celtics’ sudden season-ending loss in Game 7 on Monday night time, the most important query of this summer time was raised. About Brown’s future with the Celtics. About what he’s in search of. About his expectations for a way extension talks will play out.
This summer time, the Celtics can provide Brown a supermax extension value $295 million that might hold him in Boston long-term. Brown, who had simply come off the ground after probably the most disappointing performances of his profession, shrugged off the primary query about his future.
“I expected to win today and move on,” Brown stated. “That’s what my focus was on and that’s what my focus has been on. We failed. I failed. It’s hard to think about anything else right now, to be honest. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”
When the subject was raised once more minutes later, Brown struggled to provide you with a solution when requested about his mindset getting into potential extension talks and his expectations.
“Say that again?” Brown stated, shopping for himself extra time to course of a solution.
When it was requested once more, Brown took 25 seconds to formulate one thing.
“You asked my thought process?” Brown requested in the midst of that.
“I don’t even really know how to answer that question right now, to be honest,” Brown stated. “My thought process is take it one day at a time, focus on getting better. Focus on what the future holds and see where we are from there. I guess I don’t know really know how to answer that.”
Some time after July 1, when the Celtics can formally provide Brown the supermax, a solution will come. It’s undoubtedly the most important query dealing with this franchise as they flip the web page from a failed season and work out the best way to construct a championship staff shifting ahead round Jayson Tatum and Brown.
Brown had a profession season in 2022-23, posting a career-high 26.6 factors per recreation as he was named an All-NBA second staff choice for the primary time. But he crumbled with a forgettable efficiency within the East finals. He averaged simply 19 factors over the seven video games and punctuated the sequence with a disastrous efficiency in Game 7 as he scored simply 19 factors and dedicated a career-high eight turnovers after Tatum sprained his left ankle to ship the C’s packing for the summer time.
“Just a terrible game,” Brown stated. “When my team needed me most, like J.T. hurt his ankle, first play of the game, and you could see it like swelling up on him. He couldn’t move out there. It was tough for him. My team turned to me to make plays and I came up short, I failed. It’s tough. I give credit to Miami, but just a terrible job.”
There are necessary concerns president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and the Celtics will make whereas assessing their future with Tatum and Brown, who’re nonetheless getting into their primes at age 25 and 26, respectively, and have confirmed able to main the C’s to the NBA Finals.
Both Celtics stars are eligible to be provided the supermax extension, with Brown certified to obtain one first this summer time after which Tatum subsequent summer time. Tatum is eligible to obtain a five-year, $318 million extension subsequent summer time and can nearly definitely get it because the face of the Celtics franchise.
If the C’s resolve to supply Brown the supermax, then, they might be committing $613 million to their two stars, who would take up a good portion of the wage cap in that situation. That turns into harder with the introduction of a brand new collective bargaining settlement that incorporates challenges for groups spending into the luxurious tax and can restrict the Celtics’ flexibility to construct a championship roster round Tatum and Brown.
The Celtics providing Brown a supermax deal finally feels probably until they immediately really feel like a large change is critical and shake up a core that’s on the point of a championship however hasn’t but climbed over the hump. There aren’t simple options to make.
Ultimately, it might come all the way down to Brown. As Monday advised, he’s not sure what his future holds and his need to make a long-term dedication to remain in Boston is a legitimate query. But no participant has ever rejected a supermax extension.
Those questions will loom over the Celtics for a minimum of the following month. Tatum, for one, made clear his hope for the Celtics and Brown to return to a long-term settlement this summer time.
“It’s extremely important,” Tatum stated. “He’s one of the best players in this league. He plays both ends of the ball and still is relatively young. And he’s accomplished a lot so far in his career. So, I think it’s extremely important.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com