The Brooklyn Nets haven’t moved on from Jaylen Brown. Not really. Two years after almost landing him in the Kevin Durant trade saga, the Nets are still lurking around the Boston Celtics star, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto.
Back in 2023, Brooklyn was deep in talks with Boston about a Durant deal that would have sent Brown to the Nets. That fell apart when the Nets pivoted to Phoenix’s package instead. But the interest never really died.
Scotto reports that the Nets still have their eyes on Brown, and here’s the thing — they’ve got the assets to make it happen. Brooklyn is sitting on a pile of future first-round picks. They’ve got Michael Porter Jr.’s expiring contract, which is basically trade gold for salary-matching purposes. And they’ve got center Day’Ron Sharpe, a guy Boston actually had interest in last season. So the pieces are there if the Celtics ever decide to move on from Brown.
The Nets aren’t just looking at one guy
Brooklyn has been doing homework on other high-profile targets too. Scotto says the Nets gauged the price tag on Miami’s Tyler Herro this offseason. It’s pretty clear the front office is testing every possible avenue to add a real star to the roster.
But here’s where it gets tricky. ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel reported that Brown hasn’t asked out of Boston. League sources say he hasn’t approached Brad Stevens or anyone in the front office about a trade. So any talk of him leaving is coming from the Celtics’ side, not from Brown himself.
That doesn’t mean Boston isn’t listening. The Celtics have reportedly poked around on Brown’s trade value this offseason. There were even talks involving Giannis Antetokounmpo before he ended up in Miami. That’s wild to think about now, but apparently those conversations happened.
For the Nets, this is a patient game. They’ve got the picks and the contracts to make a competitive offer. But Brown has to be available first. And right now, he’s still wearing Celtics green without any public desire to change that.
What happens next probably depends on how Boston’s season goes. If the Celtics stumble or if Brown’s role becomes an issue, maybe the door cracks open. Until then, Brooklyn is just another team with a wish list and a lot of assets burning a hole in their pocket.
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