It was a shock to the NBA world when the Philadelphia 76ers pulled off the trade to acquire Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics. The No. 3 pick of the 2016 NBA draft spent 10 terrific seasons in Boston with career averages of 20.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.9 assists and he won finals MVP in 2024.
The best season of Brown's decorated career came in 2025-26 when he averaged 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists as he led the Celtics to a 56-26 record and the No. 2 seed in the East. It was expected to be something of a "gap year" for Boston with the injury to Jayson Tatum, but Brown made sure they were in contention and put on an incredible performance.
Despite now being with the Sixers, the Celtics still have respect for everything he's done in his career. Per The Boston Globe, team president Brad Stevens addressed the Brown trade and hinted at a jersey retirement (h/t Yahoo! Sports):
"I get a lot of emails and a lot of people that ask about wanting to be a GM. I'm like, 'I wish you would've been around last summer when we basically had to trade Jrue Holiday.'
"That's like brutal. Or we go through this long, arduous process and ultimately decide to trade Jaylen, whose numbers will likely go up in the rafters in Boston. Not fun."
It's obvious that the Brown trade is going to hang over the Celtics for a bit, but he has done way too much for the organization to not have his No. 7 retired there. He was terrific as a member of the Celtics and deserves the respect they give him.
This article originally appeared on Sixers Wire: Celtics' Brad Stevens hints at jersey retirement for Jaylen Brown
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