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Shams Charania Has Telling Update On Jaylen Brown Trade

Originally posted on The Spun | By Andrew Gould | Last updated Jun 24, 2025 8:12 PM ET

The Boston Celtics quickly began what could be a busy offseason that will include trade speculation surrounding Jaylen Brown.

After losing Jayson Tatum to an Achilles tear, the Celtics face a crossroads entering 2025-26. They indicated their mindset by trading All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.

ESPN insider Shams Charania told Stephen A. Smith that the Holiday deal represented "the start of a very active offseason." Charania said they were speaking to multiple teams about moving Kristaps Porzingis. Shortly after the podcast appearance, Charania broke a three-team deal sending Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks, with Boston landing Atlanta Hawks forward Georges Niang and a second-round pick.

Charania said the Celtics "prefer not to trade" Brown and Derrick White. However, several teams have shown "significant interest" in Brown, who signed a five-year, $304 million supermax contract before the 2023-24 season.

"The contract is steep. I understand it," Charania told Smith. "But listen, there are teams, especially in today's NBA ... You're trying to make a swing. And I think what we're going to see now, in both conferences, is a lot of activity."

Acquiring Brown would undoubtedly constitute a big swing. The four-time All-Star is coming off a season in which he averaged 22.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game.

Brown has four more years under contract, so Boston may hope Tatum returns strong to re-form a dynamic duo that netted the organization an NBA title last year.

Charania isn't the only ESPN insider to ponder a Brown blockbuster. On Tuesday morning's Get Up, Brian Windhorst questioned whether the Celtics could receive a significant return because of the 2024 Finals MVP's bloated salary.

"This is the new reality in the NBA," Windhorst said. "Is Jaylen Brown an excellent player? Yes. Absolutely. Is he a $300 million player? That's where you get into some things. And so, when you look at Jaylen Brown, a player who's just had knee surgery -- they think he’s going to be back and be fine -- who makes $300 million, I'm not sure the value is there for the Celtics, even if they wanted to trade him."

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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