Trey Murphy III may be next on Celtics' radar after stunning Jaylen Brown trade

The Celtics have clearly been lusting after Trey Murphy III, and the Pelicans clearly had no interest in Jaylen Brown. That deal never came to fruition, but after dealing Brown to the 76ers for Paul George and draft picks, Boston has the ability to turn around and go chase Murphy, whom they’ve coveted all along.

The Celtics still have the $27+ million trade exception from the Anfernee Simons deal to play with, and they can absorb Murphy’s entire salary with that perfectly. They also have some premium draft picks to sweeten the pot with a 2028 swap that will likely come from the Clippers, an unprotected 2031 first from the 76ers, several of their own firsts, and a boatload of seconds.

The Celtics can also up the ante with a useful role player and sharpshooter on a solid contract in Sam Hauser, or possibly even a promising young player like Jordan Walsh or Ron Harper Jr., to land the 26-year-old sharpshooter who scored 21.5 points per game last season and would fit like a glove in Boston next to Jayson Tatum.

Boston could even still manage to make a move for TM3 and still stay under the luxury tax, which would allow them to reset the repeater tax and spend much more freely in the coming years. Losing Brown absolutely stings, but the idea of coming back next year with Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Trey Murphy III, Paul George, Neemias Queta, Mitchell Robinson, Hugo Gonzalez, Baylor Scheierman, and others is nothing to sneeze at.

Celtics have all kinds of trade options now

Boston could even get crazier and try to flip PG-13. The Pels didn’t want Brown, but PG will be an expiring deal next year, which may be more appealing than having to extend JB and paying him upwards of $300 million over the next five years.

If Boston sends George and his $54+ million salary to New Orleans, they could not only take back Murphy, but could also absorb another player on a decently sized contract like Dejounte Murray, Herb Jones, Jordan Poole, or even Zion Williamson. That could be another player to help the Celtics or another asset/contract to be flipped. They could even open up another TPE in the process that would last another year.

The point is, by trading Brown, the Celtics have opened up even more possibilities, and they’ve closed the book on very few. Trading Jaylen Brown is going to sting for a while, and the initial return rightfully made fans squeamish, but Brad Stevens and company likely aren’t done making moves, and they’ve got a lot more ammo to work with than they did yesterday.

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