76ers Rival Celtics Reach Extension With Jaylen Brown

The Celtics locked in Jaylen Brown.

The Boston Celtics aren’t going to split up their star duo anytime soon. On Tuesday, ESPN’s Marc Spears reported that the Celtics had inked Jaylen Brown to a new contract extension.

Per Spears, Brown’s new extension is a five-year supermax, which would allow the star forward to earn up to $304 million. With that, his contract becomes the richest in NBA history.

Brown’s latest deal doesn’t come as much of a surprise. As the Celtics entered the 2023 offseason, it was only a matter of time before they locked in Brown long-term. While contract discussions were put on hold for a bit, it wasn’t due to a matter of disagreements. Rather Brown was out of the country handling business for the Players Association.

Not long ago, Brown’s future in Boston was in doubt. Two seasons ago, he was rumored as a potential trade candidate for teams such as the Philadelphia 76ers when they dealt with the Ben Simmons drama. While those rumors were short-lived, Brown was linked as a potential sign-and-trade candidate as the 2022-2023 season winded down.

At this point, Brown’s future with the Celtics is no longer in question. Locked in for years to come, the Celtics hope to keep building around Brown and Jayson Tatum, who have formed an All-Star duo over the years. Just two seasons ago, the Celtics made a run to the 2022 NBA Finals after defeating the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The following season, the Celtics managed to make another run in the East after defeating the Atlanta Hawks and the Sixers in the first two rounds of the 2023 NBA Playoffs. Unfortunately for Boston, they couldn’t overcome the Miami Heat this time around.

After making some key tweaks in the offseason and figuring out Brown’s future, the Celtics are set to become contenders in the East once again for the 2023-2024 season.