Payton Pritchard was not the story Tuesday. Brad Stevens was. After the first round of the NBA Draft, he would not say Jaylen Brown is guaranteed to stay with the Boston Celtics on opening night.
“I’m never going to predict the future,” Stevens said when asked about Brown’s roster status. He added that Brown has always been valued, calling him “an amazing teammate,” “a great person to be around” and “a big part of us.”
Brown’s place in Boston
Brown, 29, has given Boston a long run of production. He finished sixth in MVP voting, has reached the conference finals six times and the finals twice, and owns one championship from 2024 plus one Finals MVP award.
He has also made five All-Star Game appearances and earned two All-NBA team berths. That résumé is why the public answer from Stevens landed with weight: he praised Brown’s value while still declining to close the door on a move.
Stevens keeps the door open
The comment fits a stretch in which the Celtics have already been linked to trade activity around Brown, including a failed push for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Boston also won 56 regular-season games before a first-round playoff exit, a finish that made the roster look less secure than the record suggested.
Brown himself has been clear about his preference. On a May 6 Twitch stream, he said, “I love Boston” and, “And if it was up to me I could play in Boston for the next 10 years.” Stevens did not match that certainty. He instead said, “Obviously, you never know,” and added, “the one thing that I want to make very clear is how valued he’s always been.”
That leaves the Celtics with the same question they carried into the draft: whether to keep building around Brown and Jayson Tatum or use him as the kind of trade chip that can reset a roster fast. For now, Stevens has left both paths open.
