Philadelphia 76ers forward Jaylen Brown says he is unsure whether he will be emotional when he faces his former team, the Boston Celtics, on Tuesday night. He also has no interest in repairing his rift with his former co-star Jayson Tatum.
Brown spoke after the Sixers’ 127-121 win over the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, in which he scored 29 points. He said he has not spoken to or seen Tatum since the Celtics traded him in the offseason, and he has no plans to talk to Tatum when the Sixers host Boston.
“It’s nothing to talk about. I mean, he’s on his side, I’m on my side,” Brown said. “Just playing basketball. Both of us are trying to win, so it’s nothing to talk about. Just check the ball up.”
Brown and Tatum played together in Boston for nine seasons. Both were selected third overall, Brown in 2016 and Tatum a year later. Together they formed one of the most successful pairings of their era. They guided the Celtics to five Eastern Conference finals appearances and two trips to the NBA Finals, and they won the championship over the Dallas Mavericks in 2024.
A relationship breaks down
Critics questioned whether the two could co-exist on the floor throughout their time together. Publicly, though, they consistently backed each other and defended their belief that they could play together. Their 2024 title, the Celtics’ first since 2009, appeared to prove them right.
Two years later, Boston traded Brown to Philadelphia for Paul George, two first-round picks (2028 and 2031) and two second-round selections (2028 and 2030). The deal appears to have ended whatever relationship the pair had left.
Last month, Brown stirred up social media by posting a blue hat emoji on Instagram. The emoji is slang for “cap,” meaning someone is lying. He posted it in response to Tatum saying in a video on his YouTube channel that he was “just as much caught off guard as the rest of the world” by the trade.
Tatum responded a day later. “There’s no beef. It’s not about that. It should be more praise,” he said. “I understand drama gets clicks and views, but I’m not really into that. I’m not blaming everybody for how they feel. Everybody is entitled to their own feelings, and we all go through different things in our lives.”
Two days after that, Brown offered a different view. He insisted there was “no beef” between them but added that there “might be a little lamb chops and some gravy.” He also repeated that Tatum has a “hell of a PR team.”
“He should stay ready at all times,” Brown added.
Top two in the East meet
Tuesday’s game marks the first time the pair will face each other since the trade, and it brings together the top two teams in the Eastern Conference. The Sixers are 9-2 and the Celtics are 7-2.
Brown said he is unsure how he will feel once the game begins. “We’ll see how I feel when we get out there, but as of now, I got no emotion towards anything,” he said. “So I’m just ready to go.”