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Tag: Jaylen Brown

  • Resetting the Sixers’ roster after their blockbuster trade for Jaylen Brown and free-agency moves

    Resetting the Sixers’ roster after their blockbuster trade for Jaylen Brown and free-agency moves

    Free agency began slowly for the 76ers, with zero news until Dean Wade agreed to a four-year contract late Tuesday night.

    Legitimate movement occurred Wednesday, when the Sixers added Ariel Hukporti but rotation players Kelly Oubre Jr. and Quentin Grimes reportedly decided to join other teams.

    Then the Sixers smacked the NBA with a blockbuster stunner, acquiring Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics in exchange for Paul George and four draft picks.

    It was a seismic win-now swing for new president of basketball operations Mike Gansey, banking on the Joel Embiid-Tyrese Maxey era rather than toggling between two timelines or fully pivoting into a rebuild around the Maxey-VJ Edgecombe backcourt. It also was an effort to keep up in an Eastern Conference that already boasts the NBA champion New York Knicks, along with revamped Miami Heat and Toronto Raptors teams that recently traded for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard, respectively.

    The Sixers just turned Paul George into Jaylen Brown and transformed themselves for an unbelievable price

    After a dizzying Wednesday, here is a reset on where the Sixers’ roster stands.

    Moving in

    Jaylen Brown

    A five-time All-Star and the 2024 NBA Finals MVP, Brown is an elite attacker and shotmaker along with a stout defender. He has demonstrated he can create a successful tandem with a fellow star and be the top scoring option when needed. Last season, he finished sixth in MVP voting, after averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists to spearhead the Celtics’ surprising 56-win season to finish in second in the Eastern Conference.

    After spending his first 10 NBA seasons cultivating a wing partnership with Jayson Tatum, it will be fascinating to track how the 6-foot-6, 230-pound Brown fits with the Sixers’ roster construction with Maxey and Edgecombe in the backcourt and Embiid (presumably) in the middle. Brown also is one of the NBA’s more outspoken personalities — even his comments on Twitch streams have caused past stirs — which will need to mesh within the Sixers’ locker room.

    Dean Wade (32) is another strong on-ball defender that will bring size and versatility to the Sixers.Phil Long / AP

    Dean Wade

    Wade instantly projects into the other starting forward spot next to Brown. The 6-9, 225-pound Wade is another strong on-ball defender with size and versatility. The 29-year-old also averaged 4.2 rebounds in less than 23 minutes during the past two seasons, and is a career 36.7% three-point shooter.

    The knock on Wade? Health. He has played in more than 60 games only once in his nine-year career.

    Ariel Hukporti

    Hukporti is the latest contender to become Embiid’s backup center. The 24-year-old was the third-team big man behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Mitchell Robinson on the Knicks’ title squad, and averaged less than 10 minutes across 79 games in his first two NBA seasons.

    Early reactions to the Jaylen Brown-Paul George trade: ‘The East offseason is crazy’

    An athletic 7-footer, Hukporti offers more pure size than Adem Bona, though Bona might be more switchable defensively and capable of playing power forward next to Embiid. And it is a bit troubling that Hukporti has struggled in similar areas — too many fouls, not enough consistency — as Bona.

    Perhaps an opportunity for increased playing time will kickstart Hukporti’s development — and productivity.

    Moving out

    Paul George

    Once a perennial All-Star and splashy free-agency signing, George’s two seasons with the Sixers will go down as a disappointment. He sustained numerous injuries in 2024-25, and last season was suspended 25 games for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy.

    Though George was terrific on both ends of the floor down the stretch of the regular season — including in the Sixers’ rally to upset the Celtics in the playoffs’ first round — his contract had been considered difficult to trade because of his age and injury history.

    Until Wednesday, that is.

    Kelly Oubre Jr., who played three seasons in Philly, will reportedly join the Indiana Pacers.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer

    Kelly Oubre Jr.

    Oubre’s three-year Sixers tenure, meanwhile, should be considered a success. He morphed from late-offseason addition on a veteran’s minimum contract, to starter who played with force and flair, to veteran who put together his most efficient season at age 30.

    Before (and after?) the Brown blockbuster, it was puzzling that the Sixers decided not to match (or offer a similar deal) to the two years and “nearly” $17 million that ESPN reported Oubre agreed to with the Pacers. The Sixers held Oubre’s full Bird rights, which allows teams to re-sign their own free agents even if they are already over the salary cap.

    It is possible Oubre wanted a change of scenery — Indiana, which made the 2025 NBA Finals, is expected to regain contender status once All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton recovers from Achilles surgery — or that Gansey did not value Oubre as much as former lead executive Daryl Morey. But the most cynical observer could conclude that letting Oubre walk was a move to help stay under the luxury tax.

    Quentin Grimes

    Grimes’ four-year, $60 million reported deal with the Lakers is a significant raise on the $8.7 million qualifying offer he played on this season following a messy restricted free agency.

    Quentin Grimes reportedly agrees to $60 million deal with Lakers, ending Sixers contract saga

    Grimes flashed his “attack mode” scoring punch and tenacious defense in spurts as a sixth man. But he shot a career-low 33.4% from three-point range last season, and, other than an excellent Game 5 performance on both ends in Boston, was not good enough during the playoffs for a Sixers second unit that desperately needed scoring production.

    His departure means the Sixers likely will need immediate contribution from new draftee Labaron Philon Jr., whom many evaluators considered a first-round steal at 22nd overall.

    Moves still to come

    Final roster spot(s)

    Swapping out George’s contract for Brown’s still creates a top-heavy cap sheet. The Sixers are now about $2 million under the luxury tax and $10 million below the first apron, where they are hard-capped. And assuming Hukporti’s salary comes out of the nontaxpayer midlevel exception, the Sixers still have $2.6 million from that to spend along with the $5.5 million biannual exception.

    The Sixers could add two more players to reach 15 on the full-time roster, though they have often only carried 14 to stay under the luxury tax.

    LeBron James is a free agent this summer. Could the Sixers’ recent moves interest the 21-time All-Star?Charles Fox / Staff Photographer

    It is reasonable to expect that the Sixers will focus on adding one more guard — unless LeBron James wants to come to Philly, of course.

    James’ agent, Rich Paul, told Max Kellerman during the pair’s Game Over podcast released Wednesday that he had spoken to between 12 and 14 teams about James. The Sixers would be silly not to be among that group that has reached out, or to join it after the addition of Brown. Gansey’s brother, Steven, also threw gas on the social media speculation when he posted a photo on X of Gansey and James as high-schoolers in Ohio and the eyeballs emoji.

    Additionally, Bona’s $2.3 million salary for 2026-27 becomes guaranteed on July 7, while Jabari Walker and Dalen Terry’s deals become fully guaranteed Jan. 10. As of Wednesday night, unrestricted free agents Andre Drummond, Trendon Watford, and Kyle Lowry (who is expected to retire) had not committed to signing with any team.

    Current depth chart

    Point guard: Tyrese Maxey, Labaron Philon Jr.

    Shooting guard: VJ Edgecombe, Dalen Terry

    Small forward: Jaylen Brown, Justin Edwards

    Power forward: Dean Wade, Dominick Barlow, Jabari Walker

    Center: Joel Embiid, Adem Bona, Ariel Hukporti, Johni Broome

  • Early reactions to the Jaylen Brown-Paul George trade: ‘The East offseason is crazy’

    Early reactions to the Jaylen Brown-Paul George trade: ‘The East offseason is crazy’

    The 76ers coming back to beat the Boston Celtics in the first round of the NBA playoffs after being down three games to one seemed like the most exciting thing that would happen between the teams this year.

    Until Wednesday.

    The Sixers traded Paul George, two first-round draft picks, and two second-rounders to the Boston Celtics for Jaylen Brown on Day 2 of free agency, and social media has a lot to say.

    The Sixers just turned Paul George into Jaylen Brown and transformed themselves for an unbelievable price

    Here is how fans, experts, players, and even some sportsbooks are reacting to the trade:

    The early favorite

    From fans to experts, the consensus on social media is that the Sixers got more than they gave in acquiring Brown.

    Even some sportsbooks like BetMGM, Caesars, and Fliff are reacting to the trade and calling Boston’s side of the deal lackluster.

    Showing some Brotherly Love

    The trade didn’t just have fans and media talking. Other Sixers and figures with Philly ties have shared their thoughts on the newest addition to the roster.

    While Tyrese Maxey took to X to react, fellow Sixers VJ Edgecombe and Jabari Walker reposted the news on their Instagram stories with Walker captioning the story “scary sight.”

    The Sixers just transformed themselves for an unbelievable price | David Murphy

    And despite their current New York ties, Abdul Carter and Josh Hart shared their thoughts on the acquisition — and the NBA offseason at large. Carter is a Philadelphia native and Penn State product who’s now an edge rusher for the New York Giants while Hart is a former Villanova star who’s now a New York Knick.

    With love from Boston

    Some Celtics fans took to social media to express appreciation for Brown’s time in Boston, especially for leading them to an NBA championship, for which he was named Finals MVP in 2024.

    Others seemingly still are having trouble processing the trade.

    Interesting team dynamics

    Brown and Jayson Tatum being split up opens the door to a George and Tatum duo, which a few people on social media seem to be excited about.

    Others find it more detrimental to Tatum’s career.

    And in Philly, fans are looking forward to seeing the connection between Joel Embiid and Brown following some of the comments Brown made regarding Embiid and his “flopping” after the Game 7 matchup between Boston and the Sixers in the first round of the playoffs this season.

  • The Sixers just turned Paul George into Jaylen Brown and transformed themselves for an unbelievable price

    The Sixers just turned Paul George into Jaylen Brown and transformed themselves for an unbelievable price

    Well, aren’t we all a bunch of idiots?

    So much for the two timelines thing.

    And for the long, arduous process of building a contender piece by piece.

    So much for all of the hand-wringing about Kelly Oubre Jr. and Quentin Grimes and LaBaron Philon Jr.

    And about Mike Gansey, for that matter.

    The 76ers did the unthinkable on Wednesday. They did it to such an extent that it still isn’t thinkable. In fact, it’s barely believable.

    Source: Jaylen Brown traded to the Sixers for Paul George and four picks

    Not only did the Sixers come from out of nowhere to stun the NBA by acquiring Celtics superstar Jaylen Brown, and not only did they do it for a criminally cheap price, but they also somehow managed to ship out the remaining two years and $110 million remaining on Paul George’s contract.

    And, just like that, a new window of title contention has arrived.

    That’s the most important takeaway for Sixers fans. Brown transforms the Sixers in both the short and long term. The 2024 NBA Finals MVP and a sixth-place finisher in regular-season voting this year, the longtime Celtics wing is basically the exact player you would create in a lab if you were dreaming up the perfect star to maximize a team with Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe in the backcourt. He has the size, versatility, and defensive chops to help make up for however much of that they give away at the guard position. He is a straight-line player who can get to the rim through traffic with or without the ball in his hands. He is an adequate and willing three-point shooter who showed signs of being much more than that earlier in his career. He can alternate seamlessly between primary and secondary scoring roles. Basically, he is the exact player the Sixers would have been crossing their fingers to have a chance to draft at some point in order to make the Maxey-Edgecombe pairing a legitimate contender.

    Even if only half of that was true, the Sixers would have still been justified in making this deal. The unprocessable thing about this deal is the mind-bogglingly low price Gansey somehow managed to finagle from a Celtics team that doesn’t make many bad decisions.

    Sixers president of basketball operations Mike Gansey has gotten off to a strong start in Philly. Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer

    Consider a deal that the Lakers and Jazz struck earlier in the day on Wednesday. In exchange for the right to sign restricted free agent center Walker Kessler, a zero-time All-Star who played just five games last season before undergoing shoulder surgery, the Lakers agreed to pay:

    • a 2031 unprotected first-round pick
    • a 2033 unprotected first-round pick
    • two first-round pick swaps

    That’s what the Lakers gave up for the right to sign Kessler to a four-year, $130 million deal.

    Here is what the Sixers will reportedly give up to acquire Brown:

    • a 2031 unprotected first-round pick
    • an additional first-round pick, TBD (initial reports suggest it will either be the Clippers’ unprotected 2028 first-rounder or the Sixers’ 2028 first-rounder, whichever is more favorable).
    • two second-round picks, one in 2028 and the other in 2030

    (It’s worth noting that the Kessler deal was struck by Jazz CEO Danny Ainge, the former Celtics president who once upon a time acquired Brown and Tatum while fleecing teams in the process.)

    Jaylen Brown will partner with Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe to lead a revamped Sixers roster. Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer

    But the real coup de grace is the inclusion of George, whose contract many believed was under water to the point that the Sixers would’ve needed to attach a first-round pick just for some other team to take it onto their books. Maybe that was errant thinking about the rest of the league’s willingness to spend $110 million over two years on a 36-year-old who has played in 78 games over the last two regular seasons and has played in more than 56 games just once since 2019. Whatever the case, the Sixers should be thrilled.

    George is a tidy anchor for such a mind-blowing deal. The Sixers basically traded him for a much better player who is 6½ years younger. The cost for the move was less than what the Raptors traded for 35-year-old Kawhi Leonard (Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two unprotected firsts, a pick swap, and change), who is in the last year of his contract and will be able to walk away if the Raptors don’t give him a huge contract extension into his late 30s.

    Even if the Celtics and the rest of the NBA knows or suspects something that the Sixers don’t, even if the trade doesn’t prove to be a game changer, it still doesn’t leave them a whole heck of a lot worse off than they would’ve been over the next couple of years with George.

    Heading into the offseason, it sure looked like the Sixers would need to be in a mode of making the best of things and preparing for the day when George would move on and free up some payroll maneuverability. Instead, they’ve vaulted themselves into the realm of top-end contenders for the next three seasons.

    Dean Wade makes a ton of sense for the Sixers

    On Wednesday evening, FanDuel had the Sixers tied as the fifth favorite for the NBA title at 22-to-1, trailing the Spurs (2.4-to-1), Thunder (2.5-to-1), Knicks (8.5-to-1), and Celtics (14-to-1).

    Their immediate title hopes still hinge largely on the availability of Joel Embiid. The difference now is that they will not need Embiid to be anything close to his MVP prime in order to be taken seriously. Even if he is some lesser form of who he was last postseason, the Sixers can make an argument for having the edge in top-end talent regardless of matchup. Even if Embiid is absent entirely, they almost certainly should be expected to challenge for a top-four playoff seed.

    Are there ways this could go wrong? Sure. The loss of the 2028 pick would be particularly acute for a team that was presumed to need two or three solid drafts to get itself ready for the post-Embiid era. The Sixers’ depth is still a major question mark. They have a conspicuous lack of volume-capable three-point shooting on the wing. We have yet to hear Brown’s thoughts at having been traded to a place like Philadelphia, on a team with two young ball-dominant scorers and Embiid. At the same time, they can always pivot if it doesn’t work.

    There is always risk. The question is the price of it. For the Sixers, there wasn’t much to decide.

  • Source: Jaylen Brown traded to the Sixers for Paul George and four picks

    Source: Jaylen Brown traded to the Sixers for Paul George and four picks

    The 76ers have officially entered the summer of blockbuster trades.

    They agreed to acquire All-NBA wing Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics in exchange for Paul George, two first-round draft picks, and two second-round draft picks, The Inquirer confirmed Wednesday evening.

    From the Sixers’ perspective, it is a stunning move for new president of basketball operations Mike Gansey to pull off in his first offseason. George’s max contract — still with two years and more than $110 million remaining — was considered difficult to trade given his age and injury history.

    But the Celtics clearly were motivated to move Brown, who finished sixth in last season’s voting for NBA Most Valuable Player and had spent his entire 10-year career with the franchise.

    NBA free agency: Sixers make blockbuster trade to acquire Jaylen Brown, send Paul George to Celtics

    Boston reportedly offered Brown to the Milwaukee Bucks in a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, before the Bucks instead sent Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. On social media and his popular Twitch streams, Brown publicly expressed displeasure with his name being dangled in trade talks and defended his career accomplishments.

    So the Sixers have swapped out one three-star roster construction for another, linking Brown with All-NBA guard Tyrese Maxey and former MVP Joel Embiid. Brown has three years and approximately $183 million remaining on his supermax contract. But he is 29 years, played in 71 games in 2025-26, and is an elite attacker and shot-maker coming off his best individual season.

    Brown, a five-time All-Star, created an excellent wing tandem with Jayson Tatum that propelled Boston to the 2024 championship and the Finals MVP award that year. Last season, he became the bona fide No. 1 offensive option while Tatum recovered from Achilles surgery, averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists to spearhead the Celtics’ surprise 56-win season to finish in second place in the Eastern Conference. He called it his “favorite” season on Twitch, drawing criticism — or, at least, eyebrow raises — from some outsiders wondering if that was a swipe at his role (or partnership with Tatum) or why he valued a disappointing first-round exit more than a title run.

    Jaylen Brown had a career-year for the Celtics last season and is a five-time All-Star.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer

    Such every-night responsibility will not necessarily be the case with the Sixers, given Embiid and Maxey both have experience as the team’s offensive centerpiece. Yet it is a seismic win-now swing in an Eastern Conference race already boasting the defending-champion New York Knicks — and that has already been revamped with significant trades in recent days.

    After Antetokounmpo was moved the night before the NBA draft, the Toronto Raptors agreed to re-acquire Kawhi Leonard from the Los Angeles Clippers Tuesday. Elsewhere, LaMelo Ball was traded from the Charlotte Hornets to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Ja Morant was dealt from the Memphis Grizzlies to the Portland Trail Blazers.

    In the deal, the Sixers lose George, a former perennial All-Star and their splashy free-agent signing in 2024.

    Kelly Oubre Jr. reportedly agrees to a two-year, $17 million deal with the Indiana Pacers

    But George was hampered by multiple injuries his first season as a Sixer, and then last season was suspended for 25 games for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy. He finished 2025-26 strong on both ends of the floor — including in the Sixers’ rally to upset the Celtics in the playoffs’ first round — and said he was looking forward to focusing on basketball training this offseason.

    Free agency began quietly for the Sixers, with forward Dean Wade agreeing to sign a four-year, $39 million contract late Tuesday, The Inquirer confirmed. Things picked up Wednesday, when reserve center Ariel Hukporti agreed to a one-year deal, The Inquirer confirmed, and Kelly Oubre Jr. and Quentin Grimes reportedly agreed to leave the Sixers to sign with the Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Lakers, respectively.

    Then came the stunning blockbuster trade, making Brown a Sixer.