Jaylen Brown injury effects on Boston Celtics trade deadline plans
A Jaylen Brown facial fracture suffered against the Philadelphia 76ers during a 106-99 February 8 victory for the Boston Celtics came at quite an inopportune time. With the 2023 NBA trade deadline approaching at 4 pm on February 9, the Cs now have a more urgent need on the wing.
Sam Hauser’s has re-emerged, but he’s too unseasoned to tell if it’s a hot streak or a genuine turning of the corner. Justin Jackson has been a garbage time player and may not be ready for a bigger role. Brown missing time beyond the All-Star break could be damning for the Celtics’ postseason seeding with three teams within five games in the standings as of this writing. Other teams could improve by the deadline’s passing, making the need for a move even more pressing.
It’s time for Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens to get aggressive in an unexpected way before it’s too late.
The Boston Celtics must pivot on trade deadline plans
The Boston Celtics must make a pivot, and stop heavily pursuing a pivot. Boston was hot on the trail of Jakob Poeltl on February 8 despite previously being ruled a long shot to land the Spurs center, but they now must focus on a forward capable of filling in for Brown’s minutes.
Jae Crowder could be a band-aid option, but there could be more grandiose targets who deserve monitoring. In particular, Bojan Bogdanovic is worth calling about even if the Pistons front office isn’t planning on moving him. With Boston in desperation mode, Detroit could pick on a vulnerable Cs front office that doesn’t want the current title window to close. Other more affordable options who could provide a scoring burst in Brown’s absence include Garry Harris, Terrence Ross, and Furkan Korkmaz — the latter of whom is available after his trade request to Philadelphia.
Brown’s injury may force Stevens hand and force him to be more active on the trade market. Perhaps history will look back positively on the front office’s gambles one day.
Buckle up. Boston is now even more of a buyer than they had been.