Jaylen Brown appreciation thread

[keevsnick]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

[Kernewek]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

Not that surprising when you consider that Sam Hinkie was (and probably still is) gleefully ignorant on the topic of building a winning basketball team and was perfectly content to treat players as interchangeable entries in an Excel sheet.

[Donoghus]

Two weeks ago, people on here were insisting Murray was better than Jaylen.

[Moranis]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

Not that surprising when you consider that Sam Hinkie was (and probably still is) gleefully ignorant on the topic of building a winning basketball team and was perfectly content to treat players as interchangeable entries in an Excel sheet.

Sam Hinkie didn't make either of those picks.

[keevsnick]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

Not that surprising when you consider that Sam Hinkie was (and probably still is) gleefully ignorant on the topic of building a winning basketball team and was perfectly content to treat players as interchangeable entries in an Excel sheet.

Sam Hinkie didn't make either of those picks.

Yep, would have been interesting to see how Hinkie actually filled out the 76ers after tearing iot down. Although Hinkie did pick Jahlil Okafor 3rd in 2015 so he wasn't exactly perfect drafting either.

[Moranis]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

Not that surprising when you consider that Sam Hinkie was (and probably still is) gleefully ignorant on the topic of building a winning basketball team and was perfectly content to treat players as interchangeable entries in an Excel sheet.

Sam Hinkie didn't make either of those picks.

Yep, would have been interesting to see how Hinkie actually filled out the 76ers after tearing iot down. Although Hinkie did pick Jahlil Okafor 3rd in 2015 so he wasn't exactly perfect drafting either.

I'm sure he would have taken Simmons, because everyone would have taken Simmons that draft (including Ainge).  I don't think think Hinkie would have made the trade with Boston, which would have made that draft way more interesting i.e. does Ainge actually take Tatum at 1 or does he take Fultz.

Hinkie also wouldn't have traded for Butler without keeping him.  That was really the move that set them back. They gave up assets for a 1 year rental.  Dumb.  Then when they reset again they went with Harden.  Both very strange moves given how they both ended in disaster.

[keevsnick]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

Not that surprising when you consider that Sam Hinkie was (and probably still is) gleefully ignorant on the topic of building a winning basketball team and was perfectly content to treat players as interchangeable entries in an Excel sheet.

Sam Hinkie didn't make either of those picks.

Yep, would have been interesting to see how Hinkie actually filled out the 76ers after tearing iot down. Although Hinkie did pick Jahlil Okafor 3rd in 2015 so he wasn't exactly perfect drafting either.

I'm sure he would have taken Simmons, because everyone would have taken Simmons that draft (including Ainge).  I don't think think Hinkie would have made the trade with Boston, which would have made that draft way more interesting i.e. does Ainge actually take Tatum at 1 or does he take Fultz.

Hinkie also wouldn't have traded for Butler without keeping him.  That was really the move that set them back. They gave up assets for a 1 year rental.  Dumb.  Then when they reset again they went with Harden.  Both very strange moves given how they both ended in disaster.

Ya I largely agree. The Simmons pick was fine, he was the consensus guy at #1. There's no way to foresee he'd eventually become afraid of shooting.

The Butler stuff for sure set that Phili team back, that along with the Tobias trade. Hinkie built up a lot of assets then got fired and the 76ers burnt through those assets fast.

[blink]

Two weeks ago, people on here were insisting Murray was better than Jaylen.

Well right now we still have people who say that Jaylen doesn't contribute to winning. 

[Kernewek]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

Not that surprising when you consider that Sam Hinkie was (and probably still is) gleefully ignorant on the topic of building a winning basketball team and was perfectly content to treat players as interchangeable entries in an Excel sheet.

Sam Hinkie didn't make either of those picks.

Yep, would have been interesting to see how Hinkie actually filled out the 76ers after tearing iot down. Although Hinkie did pick Jahlil Okafor 3rd in 2015 so he wasn't exactly perfect drafting either.

I'm sure he would have taken Simmons, because everyone would have taken Simmons that draft (including Ainge).  I don't think think Hinkie would have made the trade with Boston, which would have made that draft way more interesting i.e. does Ainge actually take Tatum at 1 or does he take Fultz.

Hinkie also wouldn't have traded for Butler without keeping him.  That was really the move that set them back. They gave up assets for a 1 year rental.  Dumb.  Then when they reset again they went with Harden.  Both very strange moves given how they both ended in disaster.

I don’t think it’s particularly controversial to say that he set the tone and tenor for that team and the front office, though. They’re not in that position without his ‘guidance’.

[kraidstar]

There were red flags about Ben Simmons before the draft. Stuff about how his Australian teammates thought he was a joke, stuff about his lack of effort etc.

It proved prescient.

If he'd slid in the draft that probably would have helped him. Instead he was an anointed media darling from day 1 and never had to work for anything. Such a marketable player!

[Vermont Green]

Two weeks ago, people on here were insisting Murray was better than Jaylen.

Well right now we still have people who say that Jaylen doesn't contribute to winning.

When fully healthy, Murray may be a tick better than Brown, but he can't stay healthy so Brown has been better overall.  Brown had a great series vs. IND.  Hard to deny that.  Meanwhile, Murray wasn't great vs. MIN, probably nursing some injury.

[kraidstar]

Two weeks ago, people on here were insisting Murray was better than Jaylen.

Well right now we still have people who say that Jaylen doesn't contribute to winning.

When fully healthy, Murray may be a tick better than Brown, but he can't stay healthy so Brown has been better overall.  Brown had a great series vs. IND.  Hard to deny that.  Meanwhile, Murray wasn't great vs. MIN, probably nursing some injury.

Murray is very streaky and has limitations.

One area where Brown gets underrated is his freakish athleticism and physicallity. Like smothering Nembhardt on that block near the end last night. Making obscenely quick-handed steals against ball-handlers.

It makes life so much harder on the other team when you have freaks roaming around on defense who can make plays.

Having those guys also be talented scorers is a huge luxury. There's a reason Boston goes deep into the playoffs every year.

[ozgod]

Two weeks ago, people on here were insisting Murray was better than Jaylen.

Well right now we still have people who say that Jaylen doesn't contribute to winning.

When fully healthy, Murray may be a tick better than Brown, but he can't stay healthy so Brown has been better overall.  Brown had a great series vs. IND.  Hard to deny that.  Meanwhile, Murray wasn't great vs. MIN, probably nursing some injury.

I think even fully healthy Jaylen is better overall, because he's a genuine two way player. Murray might be a better pure shooter but he's nowhere near Jaylen's quality as a defender. I feel like Jaylen used to drift through games defensively in the past where he would lose track of the flow of the other team or get caught ball watching but this season he's been very locked in defensively.

[SparzWizard]

In retrospect, Jaylen should have been the #1 pick over Ben Simmons and Ingram. At the time, I thought Simmons was going to be a beast and was a little bummed that we missed on Ingram. We could have easily picked Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, Jamal Murray (though he's good), or Marques Chriss.

Yep, time for my periodic admission that I wanted Dunn.

I remember wanting Buddy Hield or Murray for that draft.

I wanted Hield. At least Murray wasn't a bad choice either, an NBA champion.

Just hated that Ben Simmons stole Tatum's glory for ROTY.

Its nuts that the Draft went 76ers-Lakers-Celtics for two straight years and the Celtics got the best player while watching their two biggest rivals fumble the pick.

It worked out okay for the Lakers, at lets they used Ingram to get Davis. But the 76ers were in an all time great position and just fumbled away the bag.

Say what you want about Ainge but neither Tatum nor Brown were obvious picks and he nailed them both.

I'm also a bit shocked the Lakers passed up Tatum for Lonzo Ball. Not a bad pick, but they could've had Tatum. I guess Lavar really influenced Kupchak/Pelinka. And the year before that, not shocking because everyone in the country was salivating over Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram. I wish we could've gotten Ingram but Hield would've been my next choice when it was our turn.

Summer 2016 and 2017 were some wild rides.

[Vermont Green]

Two weeks ago, people on here were insisting Murray was better than Jaylen.

Well right now we still have people who say that Jaylen doesn't contribute to winning.

When fully healthy, Murray may be a tick better than Brown, but he can't stay healthy so Brown has been better overall.  Brown had a great series vs. IND.  Hard to deny that.  Meanwhile, Murray wasn't great vs. MIN, probably nursing some injury.

I think even fully healthy Jaylen is better overall, because he's a genuine two way player. Murray might be a better pure shooter but he's nowhere near Jaylen's quality as a defender. I feel like Jaylen used to drift through games defensively in the past where he would lose track of the flow of the other team or get caught ball watching but this season he's been very locked in defensively.

It is a fair debate.  Murray is a better ball handler and a more natural scorer/shooter.  Brown does pretty much everything else better.  The result is that Brown can impact the game more when he isn't scoring.  Not so much for Murray.  That is why you see such a gap between good Murray and no-so-good Murray.

Don't get me wrong, I like Brown, and rank him high.  But Murray is really good too.  When Murray is right, DEN is much better as compared to when Murray is not right (which is a lot).  Murray was on last season and they win a title, Murray not on as much, they lose to MIN.