Jaylen Brown’s name has been coming up a lot in trade rumors beyond just Giannis Antetokounmpo’s name.
It sounds like he is available and the Celtics are listening “with intention” according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The latest on the Celtics and Jaylen Brown on ESPN’s NBA Draft Show: pic.twitter.com/BSTWYSHpRX
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 23, 2026
When asked if Jaylen Brown would be on the team next year, Brad Stevens said last night, “Jaylen Brown is a big part of us. I’m never gonna predict the future, but everything I think about has been building around (Brown and Jayson Tatum). Obviously, you never know, but the one thing I want to make clear is how valued he’s always been.”
Not exactly a resounding “yes, Brown will be in Boston next season,” so let the rumors continue.
Thus, here are five teams that could trade for Brown and what they could give up.
New Orleans Pelicans
If any trade is going to happen with New Orleans, Trey Murphy is going to be involved in any deal.
A 6-foot-6 swing man, Murphy has averaged 21.2 and 21.5 points per game that last two seasons while playing solid defense. He is a really good player who has three years at $87 million on his current contract.
Zion Williamson is, of course, going to be mentioned, too. Health has always been a concern for Zion, but he played in 62 games last season, including missing only one game from December 12th to April 5th, when he was shut down for the final three games of the season.
The former #1 pick of the 2019 NBA Draft is a good player, scoring 21.0 points per game on 60% from the field last year and 60% from inside the arc. Stevens has said Boston wants more dunks and Zion would certainly provide that. However, his fitness and health probably keep him out of a deal.
Herb Jones is another valuable piece that the Pelicans could include in a deal. An elite defensive player, Jones would become Boston’s best wing defender, but his shot leaves something to be desired. A new 3-year, $68 million extension does kick in next season for Jones, but he is a good player who Boston should want in a deal.
A potential deal: Boston gets Trey Murphy, Herb Jones, Jordan Poole and the better of Bucks or Pelicans 2027 first round pick, unprotected. New Orleans gets Jaylen Brown and Sam Hauser.
That Bucks or Pelicans pick is likely going to be top-10 and a pick I am rather interested in, even if next year’s draft is considered bad by many. Murphy, as I stated, is a must and Jones is a guy Boston would likely want to grab, too.
I debated between Dejounte Murray and Jordan Poole as the big salary matcher of this trade. Murray is a better player, but he has a $30.8 million player option for the 2027-28 season that I have limited interest in acquiring.
Adding Hauser to the deal hurts, but he helps the salaries and allows the Celtics to get more from the deal because New Orleans really values Murphy and Jones.
Houston Rockets
This is about Kevin Durant vs. Alpren Sengun. I’d rather get Durant — he is a better player and I just don’t think Sengun can survive well enough on defense to win a title. Yes, there is baggage involved with Durant. He could make a burner and say everyone on the team stinks, and his age is an issue, but I would rather him over Sengun.
I don’t like Sengun’s game, but I can understand why someone would want him over Durant. His passing and rebounding are both good traits; his defense is just too bad for me to want to grab him.
Meanwhile, Durant remains an excellent player. He played in 78 games last season, averaging 26.0 points, 5,5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. He slides into the Celtics starting lineup very well and can give Boston 2 or 3 more years of high level play.
I also have no interest in Jabari Smith Jr. He is a fine player, but paying him $122 million over the next 5 years is not something I would love to do.
Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson are players the Celtics have to ask for and the Rockets will say no. They should also ask for the 2027 Brooklyn pick, another thing that Houston likely says no to, although they’re more likely to say yes to that than the players.
A potential deal: Boston gets Kevin Durant, Clint Capela, the Suns 2027 first round pick, unprotected and the best of Suns, Rockets, Mavericks 2029 first round pick, unprotected. Houston gets Jaylen Brown.
I do think there is a debate on if Brown or Durant is a better player right now. I’d lean Brown, but it’s really close. Age is what gets Boston more assets in this deal. Capela is a salary matcher, but he is a solid backup center, who doesn’t fill the Celtics need at center.
The picks are where the value is. The Suns proved to be better than expected this year, but that is still a mid-tier pick and with less tanking, could lead Phoenix into the lottery. The hope is that one of the three teams is in the lottery with the 2029 pick and you get two lottery picks from this deal.
Portland Trail Blazers
This is the move that would net the Celtics the least amount of player value and the most amount of draft value. Portland owns the Bucks swap rights in 2028 and 2030 while also owning the Celtics 2029 pick. Those are the prizes of this deal.
However, there are some good young players on the Blazers roster. Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson are the guys Boston would want to acquire in a deal. Brad Stevens said in his press conference on Tuesday night that the Celtics want to add speed on the perimeter this offseason. Those guys help that goal.
Sharpe averaged 20.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game last season while Henderson averaged 14.2 points and 3.7 assists. Henderson only played in 30 games due to a torn left hamstring.
You’d need to eat the last two years and $70.6 million left on Jerami Grant’s contract but that gets you more value in any deal. Grant isn’t a bad player, but he is overpaid and hurt a lot.
A potential deal: Boston gets Shaedon Sharpe, Scoot Henderson, Jerami Grant, the best of Bucks, Blazers or Magic 2028 first round pick, unprotected, the best of the Bucks, Blazers or Celtics 2029 first round pick, unprotected and the better of the Bucks or Blazers 2030 first round pick, unprotected. Portland gets Jaylen Brown.
Milwaukee doesn’t project to be very good over the next few seasons, so betting against them would be the big chips in the deal for the Celtics. You could make those picks or you could trade those picks for an upgrade in your talent pool as they build around Jayson Tatum.
Sharper and Henderson are both at the end of their rookie contracts. Sharpe has a 4-year $90 million extension kicking in this season and Scoot is extension eligible as he gets set to be a restricted free agent next season. While those guys have value, I am unsure of how much.
Add that to Grant being a negative asset and that is how I landed on Boston getting three picks.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers have been long rumored as a Jaylen Brown team. However, a deal isn’t possible to make without Los Angeles including one of Darius Garland or Kawhi Leonard.
Leonard is the better player right now. He was All-NBA last season averaging 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game and a duo of him and Tatum would rank among the top of the NBA.
However, his health and contract is a concern. He missed a large chunk of the 2024-25 season, but has been healthy ever since that point. He is also set to be a free agent and the last time he was a free agent, he did everything in his power to get to Los Angeles. Are we sure he’d extend in Boston?
Garland, meanwhile, is a worse player by a pretty significant margin, who also has health concerns. However, unlike Leonard, you know he’d be a Celtic long term, he is younger than Leonard and the Celtics could get more assets with Garland.
A potential deal: Boston gets Kawhi Leonard and the Pacers 2029 first round pick, unprotected. Los Angeles gets Jaylen Brown.
The gap between Leonard and Garland is too big for Boston to not ask for Leonard. Would the Clippers do it? I’m not sure but it would be funny after all these years for the Celtics to trade Jaylen Brown for Kawhi Leonard.
I also don’t think that the Clippers have the assets to bridge the gap to get a Brown for Garland deal done without putting newly drafted Keaton Wagler in the trade.
Leonard and Brown are so close as players, I think Leonard is probably better and that this deal would keep the Celtics in the hunt and get them another asset. However, no deal would be possible without an extension commitment from Leonard.
Cleveland Cavaliers
There was a Jaylen Brown for Evan Mobley trade framework floating around social media on Wednesday and I do think it has some merit. The Celtics need a big and while Mobley is a flawed player who hasn’t broken out in the ways many thought he would, he is a really good player.
Last season he averaged 18.2 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game and was really great in the playoffs, though his numbers were down averaging 17.0 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, he was very impactful on both ends of the floor, lifting Cleveland’s defense in a number of ways.
While he isn’t the best player I have proposed today, I think his long term impact is the most valuable to the Celtics and think getting him would be a good idea while Cleveland shakes up their team in a major way.
It would be interesting to see what a Jayson Tatum-Evan Mobley pick-and-roll connection would look like because it hasn’t felt like Mobley has clicked with James Harden in that regard.
A potential deal: Boston gets Evan Mobley, Dennis Schroder, 2031 Cavaliers unprotected first round pick. Cleveland gets Jaylen Brown.
I think the gap between Mobley and Brown, combined the Celtics taking on Schroder in this trade, is enough for there to be an unprotected pick involved.
While Mobley is a great player, he is by no means a perfect player as there are still concerns on if he can play center in the NBA for an entire season.
Bringing Schroder back to Boston is something that I would not be the biggest fan of but if it means the Celtics get a pick out of this deal, I’d be willing to do it.
