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Recently, the Boston Celtics' 2024-25 season came to an end with a crushing Game 6 loss to the New York Knicks. While the Jayson Tatum injury sustained in Game 4 may have sealed the deal for the Celtics, the team was already on the verge of going down 3-1 by the time that incident occurred.
Now the Celtics are faced with an offseason that has more questions than answers, particularly as the team navigates a potential 2025-26 season with Tatum sidelined.
Recently, NBA insider Wes Goldberg of The Ringer toyed with some ideas of how the Celtics could simultaneously decrease their roster payroll this offseason while also positioning themselves to be back in contention once Tatum returns, and he included a wild trade idea in the discussion.
Goldberg proposed that the Celtics “trade (Jaylen) Brown to New Orleans for Zion Williamson, a 2026 pick swap with Milwaukee, and a Pelicans 2029 first, then waive Williamson before his July 15 guarantee date,” per The Ringer.
Goldberg noted that the trade “would save the Celtics the whole of Brown’s contract, drop them under the luxury tax, and give them valuable assets to retool the roster.”
Trading Jaylen Brown is a wild idea for the Celtics
Trading away the 2024 Finals MVP for what would essentially amount to a salary dump with some draft considerations attached would probably not be most Celtics fans' idea of a good offseason for the organization.
However, the Celtics will undoubtedly be looking to shed salary this summer, and they may not be able to get off the contracts of Jrue Holiday or Kristaps Porzingis without sending away major future assets, which could open the door for them to potentially take calls on Jaylen Brown.
Still, with the Eastern Conference as weak as it is, it's hard to imagine Boston completely throwing in the towel on the 2025-26 season, even if Tatum misses most or all of it.
Whatever ends up happening, the Celtics will likely look vastly different in a couple of months than the team that won the 2024 NBA championship.
The NBA trade market will open back up once the Finals conclude in June.
