May 16, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) reacts during the second quarter of game six in the second round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Celtics' Jaylen Brown Says He Could Leave Boston For East Rival One Day

Originally posted on Boston Celtics on SI | By Jason Fray | Last updated Sep 11, 2025 11:00 AM ET

This is a big upcoming year for Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown.

Often playing Robin to Jayson Tatum's Batman, Brown is going into this year as the featured option on offense. Tatum's Achilles injury opens the door for Brown to assume the Alpha role he's seemingly wanted for years.

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While Brown is in the midst of a monster five-year extension paying him north of $285 million, it appears as if he has his eye on basketball elsewhere once his contract is up in 2028-29.

Appearing on the Big Tigger Show (based in Atlanta), the host of the program asked the star player directly whether there would be any chance he'd feature for his hometown Atlanta Hawks one day. Brown spoke candidly about the topic those in Beantown may feel uneasy about.

"You never know. You never know," Brown said. "I think my grandma [would want me to play for the Hawks]. We'll see."

Jaylen Brown hasn’t closed the door on possibly joining the Hawks in the future, and says his grandma has spoken to him about coming home

“You never know…”

( @BigTiggerShow / h/t @langleyatl )

pic.twitter.com/JOwsktGq9V
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 10, 2025

Brown, a savvy vet when it comes to the media at this point, did acknowledge that his grandmother seemingly has broached the subject of Brown eventually ending up in a hometown Hawks uniform.

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The homecoming has been a long time coming for Brown's family. A star prep player at Wheeler High School in the Atlanta suburb of Marietta, Brown shocked more than a handful of people when he left the Southeast and played his lone college season across the country in the Bay Area at Cal.

Brown then was drafted No. 3 overall by the Celtics in the 2016 NBA Draft. Since then, the four-time All-Star has established himself as one of the best wings in the sport. He was a core reason for Boston winning the 2024 NBA Championship (as he was recognized as the Finals MVP).

While he has been away from home for a decade — and figures to be for at least a few more years — the thought of coming back to Atlanta is likely an attractive one given the promising core the Hawks have cultivated.

At the same time, there wasn't much from this interview to indicate that he'd want to readily leave one of the most successful franchises in the history of the NBA.