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Jaylen Brown has yet to sign a contract extension with the Boston Celtics, but one of the final key things on the offseason agenda could be resolved shortly. According to Gary Washburn, the two sides are scheduled to resume talks next week on what could be the largest contract in NBA history.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski, Brown is eligible for a supermax extension worth up to $304 million over five years; in the last year of the deal, he would earn more than $70 million. The exact reason for the delay is unknown, while secondary issues such as player options, incentives, and/or trade kickers are regarded to be more of a concern than the real money.
On July 1, the Celtics and Brown were permitted to formally begin such conversations, with the hope that they would reach an agreement swiftly. When that did not happen, especially in light of the Damian Lillard rumors, some people were surprised, but everyone believed it would happen at Summer League in Las Vegas in the middle of the month.
“I can’t really talk about it but it’s been all good discussion,” Celtics president Brad Stevens said in Vegas. “We want Jaylen to be here for a long, long time, and we’ve made that clear. We’re looking forward to all sitting down and we have time here. I probably shouldn’t say anything else, but I feel optimistic.”
The two parties, however, left the desert without signing anything. The talks were then officially halted when Brown traveled to Spain on NBPA business. They are scheduled to meet again now that he has returned to the United States, with the expectation that he will commit to a long-term future in Boston. When, though, remains to be seen, and the longer the wait, the more perplexing the scenario becomes.
Brown is coming off a horrible Eastern Conference finals performance in which he averaged 19 points and 6.1 rebounds on 41.8/16.3/66.7 shooting splits in the Celtics’ seven-game loss to the eighth-seed Miami Heat, and turned the ball over 25 times. With a more usual performance, the Celtics would have returned to the Finals for the second consecutive season and possibly won the championship.
Despite his dismal performance, Brown remains one of the league’s best wings. Last season, he was an All-Star, making his first All-NBA appearance, and he averaged career highs in all categories, including 26.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists on 49.1% shooting.
