Tuesday, July 25 proved to be an eventful day for Celtics’ Jaylen Brown, perhaps even the most eventful day of his career. All uncertainty surrounding Brown’s future with Boston effectively ended on the date, with JB and the Celtics agreeing to a lucrative 5 year, 304 million dollar contract. The deal is not only the most expensive one right now, but in NBA history altogether. An admittedly impressive outcome for a player whose play received a severe amount of criticism just months earlier.
This is obviously a win on Jaylen Brown’s side, who will now be earning an average of 60.8 million annually over the next 5 years.
What about for the Celtics though?
Is this really the right call for a team who’s recent struggles were in part Brown’s own fault?
For starters, Brown is only 26 years old. That alone makes this deal worthwhile. It’s been well documented now that Boston is home to the league’s best young duo, and this deal only further maintains that core. From this point of view, this extension appears to be a no brainer. Boston can now retool around Brown and Jayson Tatum for years to come. Thus, the city’s championship window remains open for at least a few more years.
With that being said, 300 million dollars is a lot of money. Especially for a player who still can’t dribble with his left hand.
Downsides of Brown’s extension:
As stated above, Brown’s at times frustrating style of play was a key factor in the Celtics underwhelming 2023 post-season. Brown committed turnover after turnover, all while harboring symptoms of some of the worst tunnel vision possible. Open Celtics players would constantly find themselves ignored, as Brown continued to drive into 5 people and lose the ball.
Mistakes like these certainly aren’t damning, but they are nonetheless a cause for concern.
Brown’s perceived displeasure with the organization also appeared evident throughout last season. Multiple instances in which Brown would ignore wide open teammates (specifically Tatum) and show little to no excitement after positive plays were on full display, and only further fueled the speculation that he had one foot out the door already. The once elite defense that the wing formerly provided also looked to be long-gone. Opposing defenses rejoiced in taking advantage of Brown one possession after another. On offense, opponents thrived on forcing Brown to his off-hand, and generated a plethora of turnovers as a result. All of this + the financial commitment needed to keep JB, made his departure appear more likely than not.
The positive aspect:
Despite all of the aforementioned, Brown now finds himself in Boston for the foreseeable future. His contract does not feature a player option or no-trade-clause either, essentially guaranteeing the partnership to extend for at least a few more years. Maybe not what Jaylen had ideally hoped for, but the $300 million does help make up for it. At least it has to. Right?
Where this deal falls in terms of outcome obviously remains to be seen, but much of it has to do with Brown’s next choice of action. If he continues to sharpen his strengths and work on eliminating every weak link in his game, this contract will be a successful one. On the other hand, if he gets content with the new contract and stagnates, it won’t.
Final verdict:
This is ultimately what it comes down to. As of right now, the extension does appear to be the right move. Brown is again still only 26, and already has multiple conference finals, one finals, All-Star selections, and All-NBA teams under his belt. Arguably the most impressive resume for someone his age. Why move on from that to someone older, who doesn’t even possess half of that expertise?
This reason alone makes extending Jaylen Brown to the largest contract of all time worth it. It’s rare that a team gets two All-NBA players , both of whom have yet to enter their prime. Thus, it’s important to make the most of it. Brown obviously is not a perfect player, and how this deal pans out can only be evaluated after some time. For now though, the Boston Celtics made the right choice. Keeping Brown in the mix for the next few years gives the Celtics their best shot at their first title in years, a shot that neither JB or Boston can afford to miss at the moment.
