Jaylen Brown Agrees to extension

[A Future of Stevens]

It really should be about tiers rather than a numbered list. I think that Tatum is knocking on that first tier but might not ever reach it due to inefficiency and a lack of playmaking compared to some of the other top guys. The thing about Brown is, you wish he was in that third tier instead of 4th/5th. Booker, AD, old Kawhi, SGA, and Lillard would roughly represent that 3rd tier to me.

You have the narrowest of tiers if you have Tatum outside the first tier and Jaylen in the 4th or 5th.  Tatum is a 2-time consecutive 1st team All-NBAer, and has made All-NBA three times in his six year career, and he’s not in the first tier?

I just feel that the top top guys are in a tier of their own. You could even say Jokic has separated himself from guys like Giannis and Curry. I don't think Tatum is at that ultimate level, is that controversial? I thought the whole point of tiers was, everybody in the same tier has roughly the same impact on winning.

I get what you mean. I don't necessarily agree with the Brown ranking, but Tatum is definitely in that tier below the UBER guys. I would say Tatum is in the highest trade value tier, but at the top of the overall 2nd tier ranking. The only other "young guys" in the tier above Tatum are Jokic and Giannis and they are 3 years old than Tatum.

[LilRip]

Good job FO. This is the core to build around. I hope the coaching staff can maximize the insane level of talent on this roster!!!

[obnoxiousmime]

It really should be about tiers rather than a numbered list. I think that Tatum is knocking on that first tier but might not ever reach it due to inefficiency and a lack of playmaking compared to some of the other top guys. The thing about Brown is, you wish he was in that third tier instead of 4th/5th. Booker, AD, old Kawhi, SGA, and Lillard would roughly represent that 3rd tier to me.

You have the narrowest of tiers if you have Tatum outside the first tier and Jaylen in the 4th or 5th.  Tatum is a 2-time consecutive 1st team All-NBAer, and has made All-NBA three times in his six year career, and he’s not in the first tier?

I just feel that the top top guys are in a tier of their own. You could even say Jokic has separated himself from guys like Giannis and Curry. I don't think Tatum is at that ultimate level, is that controversial? I thought the whole point of tiers was, everybody in the same tier has roughly the same impact on winning.

I get what you mean. I don't necessarily agree with the Brown ranking, but Tatum is definitely in that tier below the UBER guys. I would say Tatum is in the highest trade value tier, but at the top of the overall 2nd tier ranking. The only other "young guys" in the tier above Tatum are Jokic and Giannis and they are 3 years old than Tatum.

Oh, yeah trade value tier would be totally different since Tatum is younger than most of the players around him other than Doncic. With Jaylen, I just feel that guys like Adebayo, Booker, and SGA are clearly ahead of him but they're also not in that 2nd tier behind the first tier Jokics and Giannis'. Therefore I need a 3rd tier for them and Brown is in the 4th or 5th.

[green_bballers13]

It really should be about tiers rather than a numbered list. I think that Tatum is knocking on that first tier but might not ever reach it due to inefficiency and a lack of playmaking compared to some of the other top guys. The thing about Brown is, you wish he was in that third tier instead of 4th/5th. Booker, AD, old Kawhi, SGA, and Lillard would roughly represent that 3rd tier to me.

You have the narrowest of tiers if you have Tatum outside the first tier and Jaylen in the 4th or 5th.  Tatum is a 2-time consecutive 1st team All-NBAer, and has made All-NBA three times in his six year career, and he’s not in the first tier?

I just feel that the top top guys are in a tier of their own. You could even say Jokic has separated himself from guys like Giannis and Curry. I don't think Tatum is at that ultimate level, is that controversial? I thought the whole point of tiers was, everybody in the same tier has roughly the same impact on winning.

I get what you mean. I don't necessarily agree with the Brown ranking, but Tatum is definitely in that tier below the UBER guys. I would say Tatum is in the highest trade value tier, but at the top of the overall 2nd tier ranking. The only other "young guys" in the tier above Tatum are Jokic and Giannis and they are 3 years old than Tatum.

Oh, yeah trade value tier would be totally different since Tatum is younger than most of the players around him other than Doncic. With Jaylen, I just feel that guys like Adebayo, Booker, and SGA are clearly ahead of him but they're also not in that 2nd tier behind the first tier Jokics and Giannis'. Therefore I need a 3rd tier for them and Brown is in the 4th or 5th.

I think Adebayo and Brown are in similar tiers. SGA and Booker are borderline top 10 players in the league. SGA is underrated because of OKC. I think he has MVP potential.

[ozgod]

So our cap and roster looks like this for the next few years:

[mobilija]

So our cap and roster looks like this for the next few years:

Ugghhhh....ownership such a bunch of cheapskates!

[obnoxiousmime]

It really should be about tiers rather than a numbered list. I think that Tatum is knocking on that first tier but might not ever reach it due to inefficiency and a lack of playmaking compared to some of the other top guys. The thing about Brown is, you wish he was in that third tier instead of 4th/5th. Booker, AD, old Kawhi, SGA, and Lillard would roughly represent that 3rd tier to me.

You have the narrowest of tiers if you have Tatum outside the first tier and Jaylen in the 4th or 5th.  Tatum is a 2-time consecutive 1st team All-NBAer, and has made All-NBA three times in his six year career, and he’s not in the first tier?

I just feel that the top top guys are in a tier of their own. You could even say Jokic has separated himself from guys like Giannis and Curry. I don't think Tatum is at that ultimate level, is that controversial? I thought the whole point of tiers was, everybody in the same tier has roughly the same impact on winning.

I get what you mean. I don't necessarily agree with the Brown ranking, but Tatum is definitely in that tier below the UBER guys. I would say Tatum is in the highest trade value tier, but at the top of the overall 2nd tier ranking. The only other "young guys" in the tier above Tatum are Jokic and Giannis and they are 3 years old than Tatum.

Oh, yeah trade value tier would be totally different since Tatum is younger than most of the players around him other than Doncic. With Jaylen, I just feel that guys like Adebayo, Booker, and SGA are clearly ahead of him but they're also not in that 2nd tier behind the first tier Jokics and Giannis'. Therefore I need a 3rd tier for them and Brown is in the 4th or 5th.

I think Adebayo and Brown are in similar tiers. SGA and Booker are borderline top 10 players in the league. SGA is underrated because of OKC. I think he has MVP potential.

The reason I like Adebayo so much is his physical advantage against most players and his defensive versatility. He doesn't have the mindset of a scorer, but he can score enough to keep defenses honest. He's the kind of tough frontcourt player we could really use, and his no-nonsense approach is really great in the locker room. He also only just turned 26 and could still have room to grow. I'm not going to go into all the Brown weaknesses stuff we've all discussed ad nauseam, but generally speaking I'm valuing the versatility, defense, and intangibles of Adebayo over Brown's potent but also one-dimensional offensive game.

[Who]

It really should be about tiers rather than a numbered list. I think that Tatum is knocking on that first tier but might not ever reach it due to inefficiency and a lack of playmaking compared to some of the other top guys. The thing about Brown is, you wish he was in that third tier instead of 4th/5th. Booker, AD, old Kawhi, SGA, and Lillard would roughly represent that 3rd tier to me.

You have the narrowest of tiers if you have Tatum outside the first tier and Jaylen in the 4th or 5th.  Tatum is a 2-time consecutive 1st team All-NBAer, and has made All-NBA three times in his six year career, and he’s not in the first tier?

I just feel that the top top guys are in a tier of their own. You could even say Jokic has separated himself from guys like Giannis and Curry. I don't think Tatum is at that ultimate level, is that controversial? I thought the whole point of tiers was, everybody in the same tier has roughly the same impact on winning.

I get what you mean. I don't necessarily agree with the Brown ranking, but Tatum is definitely in that tier below the UBER guys. I would say Tatum is in the highest trade value tier, but at the top of the overall 2nd tier ranking. The only other "young guys" in the tier above Tatum are Jokic and Giannis and they are 3 years old than Tatum.

Oh, yeah trade value tier would be totally different since Tatum is younger than most of the players around him other than Doncic. With Jaylen, I just feel that guys like Adebayo, Booker, and SGA are clearly ahead of him but they're also not in that 2nd tier behind the first tier Jokics and Giannis'. Therefore I need a 3rd tier for them and Brown is in the 4th or 5th.

I think Adebayo and Brown are in similar tiers. SGA and Booker are borderline top 10 players in the league. SGA is underrated because of OKC. I think he has MVP potential.

The reason I like Adebayo so much is his physical advantage against most players and his defensive versatility. He doesn't have the mindset of a scorer, but he can score enough to keep defenses honest. He's the kind of tough frontcourt player we could really use, and his no-nonsense approach is really great in the locker room. He also only just turned 26 and could still have room to grow. I'm not going to go into all the Brown weaknesses stuff we've all discussed ad nauseam, but generally speaking I'm valuing the versatility, defense, and intangibles of Adebayo over Brown's potent but also one-dimensional offensive game.

I have gone back and forth on this over the last year or two and generally leaned towards Jaylen over Bam and even Jaylen on a higher tier than Jaylen.

This last year, two years really, have convinced me otherwise. I'd rather have Bam. I was doubtful about Bam above Jaylen because Bam is not a legit #2 scorer but his non-scoring contributions are so much higher than Jaylen's non-scoring performance ... he has won me over. I'd rather have Bam as a piece to build a team around than Jaylen.

I am not sure if Bam is a tier above Jaylen or on a similar tier just a bit better but I lean towards agreement that Bam is on a higher tier than Jaylen.

Bam is just such a wonderful a teammate. He does so much to make his teammates better out there. His high post passing, screening, handles, team defense, individual defense, rebounding. Plus some scoring threat. A magnificent team player. His individual shot-creation is the only thing holding him back from being a top 10 or even MVP caliber guy.

I'd rather have that teamwork to build around than Jaylen's more individually focused game (shot creation, volume scoring). It is more valuable. It is so valuable that, yeah, a tier ahead sounds right.

[green_bballers13]

One of the talking points that I thought was ridiculous was that the Celtics would be better off not signing JB because he makes too much money. If we passed on JB, we couldn't pay another player close to what JB was going to make (rules related to Supermax). Thus, we would acquire a lesser player(s). If we traded JB, we were going to acquire a lesser player(s), because he only had one year left on his deal.

Others have made the point that the Celtics "had to pay" JB, but there's much less emphasis on the opportunity cost of signing/not signing JB. Moving on from JB would be a big mistake, and we would essentially need a top 5 pick to acquire a similar player.

This was a no-brainer and the arguments against have become hot air.

[Roy H.]

One of the talking points that I thought was ridiculous was that the Celtics would be better off not signing JB because he makes too much money. If we passed on JB, we couldn't pay another player close to what JB was going to make (rules related to Supermax). Thus, we would acquire a lesser player(s). If we traded JB, we were going to acquire a lesser player(s), because he only had one year left on his deal.

Others have made the point that the Celtics "had to pay" JB, but there's much less emphasis on the opportunity cost of signing/not signing JB. Moving on from JB would be a big mistake, and we would essentially need a top 5 pick to acquire a similar player.

This was a no-brainer and the arguments against have become hot air.

Yes, there was never a good argument for allowing JB to reach free agency.  He almost certainly would have felt insulted and would have left in free agency, at best leaving us with only a trade exception that would have been unlikely to be used.  Most likely, we would have "replaced" him with a MLE player making around $12 million.

Trading him was murkier, because none of us know what the trade offers were.  I presume they weren't great, because he's a pending free agent that surely would have looked at his options elsewhere.  The Portland trade idea was at least interesting, if #3 and Simons was on the table.  I guess then you're replacing Brown with a starting-level player, an elite prospect, and whoever you can sign with the MLE due to additional financial flexibility.  But, in the short-term that makes us worse, and with KP on a three year deal the time to win is now.

[green_bballers13]

One of the talking points that I thought was ridiculous was that the Celtics would be better off not signing JB because he makes too much money. If we passed on JB, we couldn't pay another player close to what JB was going to make (rules related to Supermax). Thus, we would acquire a lesser player(s). If we traded JB, we were going to acquire a lesser player(s), because he only had one year left on his deal.

Others have made the point that the Celtics "had to pay" JB, but there's much less emphasis on the opportunity cost of signing/not signing JB. Moving on from JB would be a big mistake, and we would essentially need a top 5 pick to acquire a similar player.

This was a no-brainer and the arguments against have become hot air.

Yes, there was never a good argument for allowing JB to reach free agency.  He almost certainly would have felt insulted and would have left in free agency, at best leaving us with only a trade exception that would have been unlikely to be used.  Most likely, we would have "replaced" him with a MLE player making around $12 million.

Trading him was murkier, because none of us know what the trade offers were.  I presume they weren't great, because he's a pending free agent that surely would have looked at his options elsewhere.  The Portland trade idea was at least interesting, if #3 and Simons was on the table.  I guess then you're replacing Brown with a starting-level player, an elite prospect, and whoever you can sign with the MLE due to additional financial flexibility.  But, in the short-term that makes us worse, and with KP on a three year deal the time to win is now.

Even then, I'm not sure that Portland would have traded a chance to draft Scoot. Joe Cronin has added years to his career in Portland by taking on a young and exciting prospect. Cronin would need to hit on JB (and other players) in a short time period to make that Blazers team a contender. Waiting on Scoot to develop is going to be far more lucrative to Cronin and his cronies as they still have jobs. Trading Scoot for JB, then missing the playoffs, is a good way to get fired.

At the end of the day, there weren't any good options available for the Celtics to trade JB.

[Moranis]

One of the talking points that I thought was ridiculous was that the Celtics would be better off not signing JB because he makes too much money. If we passed on JB, we couldn't pay another player close to what JB was going to make (rules related to Supermax). Thus, we would acquire a lesser player(s). If we traded JB, we were going to acquire a lesser player(s), because he only had one year left on his deal.

Others have made the point that the Celtics "had to pay" JB, but there's much less emphasis on the opportunity cost of signing/not signing JB. Moving on from JB would be a big mistake, and we would essentially need a top 5 pick to acquire a similar player.

This was a no-brainer and the arguments against have become hot air.

Yes, there was never a good argument for allowing JB to reach free agency.  He almost certainly would have felt insulted and would have left in free agency, at best leaving us with only a trade exception that would have been unlikely to be used.  Most likely, we would have "replaced" him with a MLE player making around $12 million.

Trading him was murkier, because none of us know what the trade offers were.  I presume they weren't great, because he's a pending free agent that surely would have looked at his options elsewhere.  The Portland trade idea was at least interesting, if #3 and Simons was on the table.  I guess then you're replacing Brown with a starting-level player, an elite prospect, and whoever you can sign with the MLE due to additional financial flexibility.  But, in the short-term that makes us worse, and with KP on a three year deal the time to win is now.

Even then, I'm not sure that Portland would have traded a chance to draft Scoot. Joe Cronin has added years to his career in Portland by taking on a young and exciting prospect. Cronin would need to hit on JB (and other players) in a short time period to make that Blazers team a contender. Waiting on Scoot to develop is going to be far more lucrative to Cronin and his cronies as they still have jobs. Trading Scoot for JB, then missing the playoffs, is a good way to get fired.

At the end of the day, there weren't any good options available for the Celtics to trade JB.

If Brown is as good as many on this board believe, Portland would have been an instant contender adding him to Lillard, Sharpe, etc. The Blazers would have only needed to smooth around the edges. 

[Roy H.]

One of the talking points that I thought was ridiculous was that the Celtics would be better off not signing JB because he makes too much money. If we passed on JB, we couldn't pay another player close to what JB was going to make (rules related to Supermax). Thus, we would acquire a lesser player(s). If we traded JB, we were going to acquire a lesser player(s), because he only had one year left on his deal.

Others have made the point that the Celtics "had to pay" JB, but there's much less emphasis on the opportunity cost of signing/not signing JB. Moving on from JB would be a big mistake, and we would essentially need a top 5 pick to acquire a similar player.

This was a no-brainer and the arguments against have become hot air.

Yes, there was never a good argument for allowing JB to reach free agency.  He almost certainly would have felt insulted and would have left in free agency, at best leaving us with only a trade exception that would have been unlikely to be used.  Most likely, we would have "replaced" him with a MLE player making around $12 million.

Trading him was murkier, because none of us know what the trade offers were.  I presume they weren't great, because he's a pending free agent that surely would have looked at his options elsewhere.  The Portland trade idea was at least interesting, if #3 and Simons was on the table.  I guess then you're replacing Brown with a starting-level player, an elite prospect, and whoever you can sign with the MLE due to additional financial flexibility.  But, in the short-term that makes us worse, and with KP on a three year deal the time to win is now.

Even then, I'm not sure that Portland would have traded a chance to draft Scoot. Joe Cronin has added years to his career in Portland by taking on a young and exciting prospect. Cronin would need to hit on JB (and other players) in a short time period to make that Blazers team a contender. Waiting on Scoot to develop is going to be far more lucrative to Cronin and his cronies as they still have jobs. Trading Scoot for JB, then missing the playoffs, is a good way to get fired.

At the end of the day, there weren't any good options available for the Celtics to trade JB.

If Brown is as good as many on this board believe, Portland would have been an instant contender adding him to Lillard, Sharpe, etc. The Blazers would have only needed to smooth around the edges.

Portland would have been really interesting had that gone down.  I think they'd have been quite weak at center, but otherwise solid:

? ?  / Nurkic
Grant
Sharpe / Thybulle
Brown
Lillard

In that scenario, do they sign Christian Wood with the MLE?  They're missing a starting center and most of a bench.

It wouldn't be a well-constructed roster -- Lillart, Grant, Brown and Wood all want the ball in their hands -- but it could beat anybody on any given night.

[green_bballers13]

Eh, that Portland team makes it to the playoffs, but I'm not sure how much further. Nurkic isn't very good, and Simons/Sharpe are still developing. Grant is a decent, but not great player. Lillard is an overrated player because of his offense. JB would need to play all world defense on this team. As we've seen, he can come and go on the defensive end.

Dallas is dealing with this right now- getting guys with "star power" that can't play 1/2 the court (defense). Dallas missed the playoffs last year. Embarrassing, especially when people are claiming Luka to be the next great thing.

[Roy H.]

Keith Smith:

Brown’s new contract is for five years and will start at 35% of the salary cap in the 2024-25 season. There are no options in the deal. His contract includes a trade bonus for the lesser of 7% of his salary or $7 million.

Unlike Brown’s current deal, there are no incentives in this contract. Brown will make the full 35% of the cap in 2024-25, with the maximum 8% raises in the following seasons. Brown’s current contract with Boston is ladened with several different incentives related to individual and team success. This one is for the maximum that Brown could get, without any bonuses involved.

The deal has been reported as being for $304 million over five years. For that to be the total number, Brown would need to start at about $52.4 million in first-year salary. That assumes the salary cap will again jump by the maximum possible 10%. However, it’s not quite that simple.

The NBA’s current projection for the 2024-25 salary cap is $142 million. That’s a modest 4.4% bump. The reason for this lower-than-expected projection is that there is considerable uncertainty within the Bally Regional Sports Network system that carries the games for about half of the NBA’s teams. The NBA is baking in some potential losses due to the bankruptcy of the Bally RSN’s parent company Diamond Sports.

Now, the cap may very well end up jumping by 10%, but that’s not what the NBA is currently projecting. Therefore, we are basing Jaylen Brown’s extension off the actual projection of a cap of $142 million.

That makes the projection for Brown’s Designated Veteran Extension as five years, $288,260,000, with a first-year salary of $49,700,000.

https://www.spotrac.com/news/breaking-down-jaylen-browns-extension-1974/

And for those thinking a $50 million contract is bad:

We’re not that far off from the NBA salary cap reaching above $200 million in a single season. At the current projected growth, we’ll get there by the 2028-29 season. When we do, the maximum salary for a player with 10-plus years or service or for a Designated Veteran Player will be $72.7 million.

$72.7 million in first-year salary and $422 million over a five-year max deal. The final salary in that contract? $96 million. Nearly $100 million for a single season. Whew boy!