Celtics shoot down Jaylen Brown, Derrick White trade rumors
These are interesting times for the Boston Celtics, who traded away Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis earlier this week to get out of the NBA's restrictive second apron. Brad Stevens' quest for salary cap and roster flexibility brought on a fresh new round of Jaylen Brown trade rumors, and even had fan-favorite Derrick White thrown in the mix as well.
Boston was reportedly receiving some really outrageous offers for both players leading up to the 2025 NBA Draft, but nothing that made them trade away two key members of the organization's 2024 Championship run. And it doesn't sound like the team has any intention of moving on from either of their stars.
After the conclusion of the draft late Thursday night, Celtics vice president of basketball operations Mike Zarren made it clear that Brown and White are not going anywhere. He laughed at the notion of either being traded during a video conference call with reporters.
"Those two guys are really, really great NBA players, and there hasn't been anything close to serious about trading them," said Zarren. "I'm not sure where all this reporting came from, but those guys are key parts of our team and we're lucky to have them here."
With Jayson Tatum expected to miss most -- if not all -- of the 2025-26 season, the Celtics will be Brown's team next year. Trading him at the draft would have signified a total tear-down for the organization, which doesn't seem like something Stevens and Zarren are interested in doing, even if dealing Brown could have brought in a bouquet of future picks and assets.
Likewise, White has became more than just a key role player, and will have even more on his shoulder's in Tatum's absence. He still has three years on his deal, and it would have taken a lot for teams to pry the do-everything guard away from the Celtics.
Stevens also shot down the rumors Wednesday night after the first round of the NBA Draft, calling Brown and White foundational pieces of the organization.
"We've got a good group. We've got the foundation, obviously with Jaylen and Jayson and D-White and Payton [Pritchard] and all those guys that a lot of teams would love to have," said Stevens.
With the Holiday and Porzingis trades, the Celtics were able to dip below the second apron by $4.5 million. But more moves are likely coming to keep Boston under the threshold, though they will likely involve reserve sharpshooter Sam Hauser or newly acquired Anfernee Simons and Georges Niang.
Dealing away Brown or White would potentially get the Celtics under the first apron too, but Stevens and company sound like they want to keep the team as competitive as possible while Tatum is out, and the core intact for when he ultimately returns.
