Boston Celtics: Jaylen Brown is the future, not a trade asset

Recently, rumors have surfaced about the possibility of the Boston Celtics trading Jaylen Brown this coming season. Though he may be worth a solid return package, the wing is not just a mere trade chip — he’s a key to a successful future for the franchise.

When the Boston Celtics selected Jaylen Brown with the third pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, they viewed him as a building block for the organization. A 6-7 wing with dual threat abilities and the potential to be a future All-Star.

Ladies and gentlemen, make no mistake about it, he still deserves to be viewed in this light.

Since coming into the league, Brown has consistently shown flashes of brilliance while on the court. Most notably, the young wing’s best run to date came under the bright lights of the 2018 postseason where he put up stellar averages of 20.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and .9 steals per game (per-36 minutes) while shooting 47% from the field and 39% from deep.

With Jayson Tatum, Terry Rozier and Al Horford by his side Boston came to within one game of reaching the NBA finals. When put in the right situation, Brown has shown he has the ability to be a serious contributor for a championship contender.

Unfortunately, the 2018-19 season was not that kind of situation.

With Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward both coming back healthy, minutes were going to be distributed differently than they were during the team’s playoff run from the year prior. This, unfortunately, meant Brown would be relegated to a different role: coming off the bench.

Though the wing was one of the main reasons for the team’s long postseason run in 2017-18, Brad Stevens thought it was best for the team if he were to rotate in from off the pine. With less minutes and less offensive touches, Brown’s numbers took a bit of a hit.

In 25 minutes per game, the wing averaged 13 points, 4.2 boards, 1.4 assists and 0.9 steals. Outwardly it appears that Brown regressed in his third season as a pro. However, when looking at his per-36 numbers (about the minutes average of a star starter), it shows that quite the opposite transpired.

With these conversions, Brown managed to put up 18.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game (all career highs). It is apparent that, when given a bigger role, the fourth year pro has the potential to be quite an impressive player.

And yet, for some reason, people honestly believe the Celtics should consider dealing him this season?

Recently, Bleacher Report came out with an article entitled “1 Trade Every Contender Should Make to Go All-In“. In it, the Boston Celtics were mentioned — obviously.

The writer, Zach Buckley, proposed a deal that would send Brown, Gordon Hayward, Carsen Edwards and a 2020 first round pick to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Bradley Beal and Ian Mahinmi. While we at the Houdini see many problems with this hypothetical deal — reaction article in the works — one fact seems to triumph amongst the rest: Jaylen Brown should be a part of Boston’s future!

Frankly, competent two-way wings are hard to come by in today’s NBA.

The Boston Celtics have two in their early 20’s.

We’ve seen what the duo of Brown and Tatum can do when tasked with being the team’s focal points. Why would it be wise to split them apart?

With Irving, Horford, Rozier and Marcus Morris all now off the roster, minutes will be up for grabs. Brown is sure to reap the benefits of this.

Yes, he is coming into the final year of his rookie deal. After this season, Brown will be a restricted free-agent looking to get paid.

While he may cost a pretty penny to retain, baring an unforeseen catastrophic season, he appears to be well worth it. If the Boston Celtics really care about their future successes, they’ll do everything in their power to retain Jaylen Brown next summer.