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Heat team president Pat Riley once issued a press release telling then-Celtics executive Danny Ainge to “shut the f*** up and manage his own team,” so you get the sense there is extra satisfaction to Miami edging Boston in these Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.
Not only have the Heat secured Antetokounmpo, forging a could-be contender (if Miami can flesh out a competitive roster around a two-time NBA MVP and Bam Adebayo), they have weakened an Eastern Conference rival, as there will be fallout from this in Boston.
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How could there not be? Boston offered Jaylen Brown, the league’s 2024 Finals MVP, plus two unprotected first-round draft picks for Antetokounmpo, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. This after Brown rallied the Celtics this past season in the absence of injured superstar Jayson Tatum, leading them to 56 wins and a No. 2 seed in the East playoffs.
Of course there will be hurt feelings on behalf of Brown. How could there not be? He has given the Celtics everything he could, entering a Hall of Fame resume since they drafted him third overall in 2016. Since season ticket-holders booed his selection at a draft-night celebration in TD Garden, he has only made five All-Star teams and six conference finals, winning MVP of the Eastern Conference finals and NBA Finals en route to a title in 2024.
And what does he get in return? Well, Brown got shopped. Again.
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According to Charania, the Celtics also offered Brown to the Brooklyn Nets in a package for Kevin Durant in 2022. At the time, he had also just helped those Celtics to the NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Golden State Warriors. Who could blame him if he were ever to begin to wonder what he can possibly do for Boston to want to keep him?
The Celtics previously smoothed over their relationship with Brown with the help of a five-year, $285.4 million maximum contract extension in July 2023. Might they do the same this summer, when he is due a two-year, $142 million extension through 2030-31?
Is it wise, though, to allocate 35% of the salary cap to Brown when Tatum is owed the same? The Celtics answered that in the negative when…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/the-celtics-attempt-to-trade-jaylen-brown-for-giannis-antetokounmpo-failed-whats-the-fallout-in-boston-150158064.html
Author : Ben Rohrbach
Publish date : 2026-06-23 15:01:00
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