Stephen A. Smith Unleashes Aggressive Jaylen Brown Take

Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown is currently on the trade block for the umpteenth time, but the Celtics seem a bit more serious about moving him this summer.

Boston included Brown in a trade offer for Giannis Antetokounmpo, but the Milwaukee Bucks ended up trading Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat.

Now, the Celtics are exploring other trade options for their former No. 3 overall pick, and they are evidently seeking a package of four first-round draft picks in return.

While the chances of Boston receiving that type of return for Brown seem rather slim, the Celtics could just be hedging their bets and hoping that they can settle on a package somewhere close to the asking price.

However, based on recent intel revealed by ESPN’s Bobby Marks, Boston may have to decrease its demands, as an analytics person told Marks that “we view [Brown] as the seventh-best player on the team.”

Obviously, such a statement is absolutely ludicrous, and ESPN’s Stephen A, Smith — who has a rocky history with Brown — decided to defend the Celtics guard.

“Now this is utterly ridiculous. I have no doubt that @BobbyMarks42 was told what he said he was told (He’s incredible at what he does) — but there is no way in hell @FCHWPO is the 7th-best player on any team in the NBA. He may be the best 2-way player in the league. Yes, it’s me saying this. Folks be on some b.s. Stop It!” Smith posted on X.

Calling Brown the best two-way player in basketball is not quite as egregious as dubbing him the seventh-best player on the C’s, but it’s still rather controversial.

Brown isn’t even the best two-way player on his own squad. That title belongs to Jayson Tatum.

It is also worth noting that Brown is 29 years old with a fairly checkered medical history, so it is entirely possible that his trade value is not quite as high as some assume.

But you would have to think teams view him as more than the seventh-best guy in Boston.

We’ll see if Brown ends up getting moved.