Jaylen Brown Eyes Post-NBA Combat Career

NBA player Jaylen Brown is eyeing a massive career pivot, confirming that he has already entered exploratory talks with Dana White about transitioning to combat sports after his from basketball career.

The Boston Celtics mainstay revealed that a move to the combat sports world is far more than a one-offeevent. Standing 6’6” and weighing in at 223 pounds, Brown would likely shake up the Heavyweight division, though a cut to the Light Heavyweight limit of 205 pounds is also possible.

Brown brings a legitimate foundation to the table. His father, Marselles Brown, was a professional heavyweight boxer, giving Jaylen a direct familial link to the ring. Furthermore, Brown has credited his long-term Muay Thai training for his interest. This week, UFC CEO Dana White confirmed that Brown has been an active presence at the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas.

While Brown remains at the peak of his NBA career—currently leading the Celtics’ playoff push with career-best scoring numbers—the “Finals MVP” appears to be methodically laying the groundwork for his next move.

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“At first I thought Jaylen was messing with me… but he’s training. The last couple of days he was in there working on his Muay Thai, and I think it’s awesome,” White said

“I think the fans like to see some of that stuff cross over. Obviously, you don’t want things to get out of hand. You don’t want violence to be enacted, but it’s kind of exciting when you get in the moment to have a little bit of controversy.Sometimes it’s not even that big of a deal, but we’ve got emotional dudes. We’ve got passionate dudes about this game.

“Some of that stuff is going to happen. You get in between those margins, you’re throwing bows. That’s a part of the game to some degree.To be honest, I’ve toyed with this, and I’ve talked to some people. Maybe in the post-career part of my life, I would love to partake in something like the UFC or even boxing. I’ve talked to Dana White about some stuff. We’ll see how things go,” Brown said