Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics

Jaylen Brown’s future with the Boston Celtics has become a hot topic over the past two weeks. The All-Star forward has been floated as a potential makeweight in a deal for Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Brown has just wrapped up the best season of his career. He dominated after being thrust into a leading role within Boston’s offense, following Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury.

As such, his trade value has never been higher. Nevertheless, the notion of parting with Brown via trade has become divisive among the Celtics fanbase and former players.

When speaking with Heavy on Sports, via Haypp snus online, former Celtics forward Evan Turner detailed why Boston would be better served by sticking with Brown.

“I don’t think that’s needed whatsoever,” Turner said of a potential Brown for Giannis swap. “For one, Jaylen Brown, I think for the next three or four years, I like Jaylen Brown’s availability and who he’s going to be over Giannis. Offensively, just down the stretch in the playoffs, I believe Jaylen might be able to score better.”

Turner continued.

“ No disrespect to Giannis. Another thing with Giannis is that when you have him on your team, you have to take on the identity of Giannis.   And we go back and look at the 2022 finals when they won, it’s like those are all shooters. That was an anomaly. I don’t know if that brand of basketball is going to work when one man’s trying to carry you up that hill.”

Celtics Have A Decision To Make

If the Celtics decide to stick with their star pairing of Brown and Tatum, Brad Stevens will have a tough decision to make. Brown will become eligible for a two-year $141 million contract extension this summer. That would mean the explosive forward would be earning north of $70 million per year in his age-33 and age-34 seasons.

Committing such a high salary to a player, almost four years before the deal is set to kick in, is a legitimate risk. Of course, if the Celtics decide not to offer the extension, Brown may decide that his future lies away from Boston.

Only time will tell how things play out. Either way, Brown’s future looks set to remain a topic of discussion for the foreseeable future.

Celtics Have Similar Decision With Payton Pritchard

Like Brown, Pritchard is eligible for a contract extension this summer. The only difference will be the value of the extension. Pritchard will likely be capped at around $100 million over four years. It’s likely the Celtics would look to sign him to significantly less than that. After all, he will also be in his 30s by the time the deal kicks in.

Therefore, Pritchard is another name who could be discussed in trade talks. He’s proven himself as one of the best second-unit guards in the NBA. If Boston decides to cash in, it could lean on his value as one of the best bargain contracts in the NBA.

This summer will see a legitimate change to the Celtics rotation. Right now, it’s hard to predict who could be shown the exit door.

However, if we listen to Turner, Brown won’t be going anywhere, and honestly, neither should Pritchard.