NEWTON — The basketball world was largely stunned when Jaylen Brown was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers last week. Since the trade was first reported on Wednesday, Celtics fans have reflected on his longtime tenure coming to a sudden halt, and what that means for the team, both on and off the floor.
And Jayson Tatum, Brown’s co-star of almost a decade, is also processing it all.
“To be honest, weird. It’s weird,” Tatum said on Tuesday night. “You play on a team with a guy for 9 years. I was fortunate enough to go to the finals with him twice, and win a championship, and push each other to be the players that we are today.”
Tatum’s reflection came as part of an hour-long sit-down at the Newton Community Stage for a sit-down Q&A with longtime reporter Howard Bryant to promote his new book, “Baby Dunks-a-Lot: The Day the Basketballs Stopped Bouncing.” (The book, co-written with author Sam Apple, is currently available for purchase at The Silver Unicorn Bookstore as well as Newtonville Books).
At the event, Tatum spoke on several topics, including his recovery from a ruptured Achilles tendon, what it’s like balancing being a father and a pro athlete, and much more (a longer story on some of his reflections is to come).
Tatum both answered questions in a moderated panel with longtime reporter Howard Bryant and also took questions from the kids in attendance.
Jayson Tatum reflected on ‘tough’ reality of Jaylen Brown trade
Bryant explicitly asked Tatum how he’s handling the reality that a new chapter is now beginning for him, the Celtics, and for Brown.
“The NBA is an incredible business; it’s an incredible job, but there are some downsides to the business and moments like this, where you just kind of feel like you’re going to be on the team with somebody, because that’s all you know,” he said. “And then it’s just like, one day you find out that they’re no longer on your team anymore. And, we’re all humans. We feel all those emotions. Going into the facility, and knowing that you have different teammates, and somebody that you’ve been to war with, essentially, is on a different team…”
Together, Tatum and Brown made five Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals.
In 2024, they won their first title as a duo.
“It’s tough. But it just makes you appreciate the moments and time that we had,” Tatum said. “Obviously, it came to an abrupt ending, but it doesn’t mean that it wasn’t super successful. Great years, obviously, that he gave to the city and to the organization.”
Brad Stevens, who addressed reporters in a press conference on Monday, said that Tatum did not have any input in the decision to trade Brown.
“I have a real hard-and-fast rule,” Stevens said. “I don’t ask guys about other guys.”
In lieu of Jaylen Brown (and Nikola Vucevic, who departed in free agency), Tatum now welcomes a slew of new teammates like Paul George, Mike Conley, and Mitchell Robinson, among others.
All three players were at the Auerbach Center this week and took photos with their brand-new Celtics jerseys.
“The tough part is you miss teammates, but then you have new teammates, and you want to welcome those guys and accept them and move forward with them,” Tatum said. “So there is a balance there.”
