Jaylen Brown (Image Credits: Imagn)

Jaylen Brown Reveals the NBA Legend Who Convinced Him to Stay With the Celtics

Originally posted on Total Pro Sports | By Afshan Khan | Last updated Mar 12, 2026 4:19 PM ET

No one could have predicted that Jaylen Brown would find himself at the center of trade rumors, especially with Jayson Tatum working his way back from an ACL tear. Yet, during the last NBA offseason, whispers circulated about Brown’s potential departure.

In the end, those rumors fizzled out, and Brown remained a key player for the Boston Celtics. Recently, on the “Cousins with Vince Carter & Tracy McGrady” show, the 29-year-old opened up about those offseason trade talks, revealing that McGrady played a pivotal role in convincing him to stay loyal to the Celtics.

“I’m grateful to this day for you opening up your crib to me and just coming to be able to kick it with the fam and just ask questions and get some good advice about how I should look at the next couple years and how I should think about and where my mind should be at at the time. I’m thinking like one thing, and he’s thinking like, nah, you need to stay, it’s going to be you. He’s telling me all the stuff that all just manifested itself. So, I can’t even like, it’s crazy looking back on it now,” Brown said.

By sticking with the Celtics, Brown solidified his loyalty to Boston and stepped up when the team needed him most. During Tatum’s absence, the five-time NBA All-Star took charge and kept the Celtics in a strong position, proving his true leadership skills.

Jaylen Brown Breaks His Silence on the Talk Surrounding Him and Jayson Tatum

Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum (Photo by Imagn Images)

After a long recovery, Jayson Tatum finally made his much-anticipated return in the 120-100 win over the Dallas Mavericks. The forward’s return sparked excitement among the fans but also raised serious questions about who will lead the team moving forward—Tatum or Jaylen Brown. Additionally, there has been significant buzz about their relationship. However, during a recent appearance on the “Cousins” podcast with Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady, Brown addressed all the outside noise and put any rumors to rest.

“We’ve accomplished a lot. We’ve won a lot and we one of the bigger profiles in the game, and it’s the Boston Celtics. So, anytime if one of us scratch our a** like it’s going to be on the news, right? You know what I mean, So, we are aware and we’re both on the same page. We had a good talk today about what we want the most. We both, you know, talk to the team as well, which is important. So, because I feel like the team kind goes off, we’ll go off what our energy is,” Brown said.

After Tatum’s return, the Celtics have won two of their last three games. They currently hold the second spot in the Eastern Conference standings with a 43-22 record. Looking ahead, they will face the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Paycom Center.

This article first appeared on Total Pro Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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