Various members of the NBA world have been weighing in since word spread earlier this week that the Celtics and Nets have been in conversation about a potential trade centered around current Brooklyn All-Star forward Kevin Durant and current Boston star wing Jaylen Brown.
Brown’s All-Star running mate in Boston, Jayson Tatum, shared his two cents on the matter earlier this week, per Nick Friedell of ESPN.
“I played with [Durant] during the Olympics,” Tatum said on Tuesday, attending the premiere of the new Showtime documentary ‘Point Gods.’ Durant, as an executive producer, was also in attendance, but did not discuss his future with assembled media.
“Obviously, he’s a great player, but that’s not my decision,” Tatum continued. “We got two new pieces [in Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari]… I love our team. I just go out there and play with my teammates. I don’t put that [general manager] hat on to make decisions.”
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- The aforementioned notion of the Nets and Celtics swapping Durant, Brown, and additional assets was explored by Jared Weiss, Jay King, and Alex Schiffer of The Athletic in a new roundtable.
- The other big lingering line item that persists at this point in the 2022 NBA offseason is the fate of Jazz All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell. The 6’1″ swingman has long been floated as a possible fit for the Knicks, a star-hungry big market club with the contracts, future draft equity, and intriguing young talent to potentially swing a deal that the Utah front office may value. The Athletic’s Fred Katz and Mike Vorkunov experiment with a fascinating exercise by opting to stage a mock draft of New York’s most valuable trade chips, starting with RJ Barrett and the Knicks’ 2029 first-round pick.
- The Knicks are not the only game in town when it comes to possibly acquiring Mitchell from Utah. Raptors team president Masai Ujiri and his Jazz front office counterpart Danny Ainge may appear at first blush to be particularly abrasive trade partners, doomed to haggle over picks and protections, opines Eric Koreen of The Athletic. However, Koreen notes that, because of the depth of Toronto’s young talent, the teams could wind up being particularly good fits for each other in a Mitchell transaction, provided Ujiri and Ainge can agree on the granular details of such an exchange.
Ofc JT ain’t liking the idea of getting KD, he wants to be the man, he would never be if BOS gets KD, no wonder he prefers JB even if that means they can’t seriously challenge for the championship.
Might want to reread that. He said he likes the team especially with the two new editions. So do most people. Plus, it seemed more like a dig at LeBron with the GM comment.
Tatum isn’t good enough to dictate roster moves. Kawhi, LeBron, KD those guys dictated moves. When you’re the #1 or 2 player in the game at the time your input matters more than the 15th best dude in the league.
KD’s dictating roster moves = getting swept in the 1st rd by Tatum/JB.
A physically and mentally healthy KD, Kyrie, and Harden team was witnessed for like 5 minutes. And after the trade Ben Simmons was telling reporters “My back is broken, my back is broken, spinal”.
KD was basically out there by himself. And he’s 33/34? Not like a young 20-something LeBron carrying hair-lip Steve, Dirty Mike, and the boys to a Finals.
Still doesn’t detract from Tatum not being the #1/2 player in the league. And the Celtics roster construction that beat KD is a Brad Stevens construct, a much deeper and more rounded team.
You mean Ainge construct, considering he drafted all of those players before he stepped away.
You realize KD wasn’t even the number one player on his team when he won.
Thank you for the rewrite. That tag ending shows conspiracy thinking & ruins a good post. End it at “…he prefers JB.”
We all want to “run this squad back” with normal improvement & with Brogdon & Gallo!
Go Celtics!
Can’t seriously contend?
Yea this year was a blimp. They ain’t getting back there
Flame much ?
@ Stonk
Vegas disagrees
Vegas knows where the money will go, why put them as a long shot if everyone is betting them early?
You’re right, there’s a bunch of great NBA teams & everyone is getting better & better but the Celtics are one of that group. Good health karma means a lot. As does playing extremely well as a team together. That’s Grant Williams’ point. The Celts can & will need to play a lot better together next season. Go Celts!
Mitchell doesn’t fit the Raptors.. too small
Then how do you explain FVV?
Explain a FVV and Mitchell backcourt
Celtics better off trading Tatum and keep Brown