The Kevin Durant trade saga that once held the NBA news cycle hostage with constant rumors has turned into an overlong survivalist drama. Those of us still interested in where perhaps the greatest scorer in the sport’s history may end up were gifted a little piece of news this week when multiple reports indicated the Celtics offered Jaylen Brown in a trade for Durant. Boston, of course, made the Finals last season going through Durant, and Brown was one of the biggest reasons why. While Durant is obviously one of the most talented people to ever play in the league, there’s an argument to be made that a trade between the Nets and Celtics could end up being regrettable for both sides. And I am about to make that argument. Here’s why I don’t like a Durant-for-Brown trade for either Boston or Brooklyn.
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For the Celtics …
In the 2022 postseason, the Celts showed they had constructed a roster tailor made for modern NBA basketball. No holes defensively. Switchable lineups. And most importantly, two young, two-way wings who could score in a variety of ways in Brown and Jayson Tatum. Brown and Tatum will be only 26 and 25, respectively, by the start of next postseason. As long as they are together, Boston’s window to compete will be open. Is it worth giving up on that duo if they can be in the mix for at least the conference finals for the next seven to eight years? Durant over Brown is obviously a short-term upgrade. But who else has to go out in that deal? Would Grant Williams be involved? What about Marcus Smart?
Boston would probably be the favorite with Durant on the team even if both Smart and Brown head to Brooklyn. But defense and depth take a hit in that scenario. And the risk with Durant is that he turns 34 in September, already has suffered a major injury and has missed significant time in each of the last two seasons. Yes, Durant is signed for four years. The question is whether he can be healthy for all four of them. Just because KD is under contract for that long doesn’t mean the championship window will coincide with the length of his deal.
The Brown-Tatum duo already has proven it can be successful in the playoffs. Losing in the Finals to a generational superstar and modern-day dynasty is nothing to scoff at. Boston has also made tweaks to its roster that address some of the problems it faced in the Finals. And Brown and Tatum themselves have room for improvement, and are just at the start of the primes of their careers. The allure of Durant is obvious. But while it may bring the Celtics closer to a title in 2023, I think that trade off is not worth how much less time overall the team’s championship window would be open.
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For the Nets …
Brown is at worst a top-30 player in the NBA. He’s incredibly talented and he can thrive during the highest-stakes moments on the floor. At the same time, at this point in his career he’s never had to be the true No. 1 option on his team. And in two seasons, he will be a free agent who will almost certainly command a max contract from whatever team he’s on. Brown is worth a max deal … on the right roster. For the Celtics, paying Brown is a no-brainer. He’s a proven commodity next to Tatum, and the two of them have a shared history of deep playoff runs.
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But would Brown be worth a max to the Nets? If Brooklyn is rebuilding, does it want to go all in on a Brown-and–Ben Simmons duo? Or would it be more appealing to trade for a package centered on picks and tear everything down? As someone who generally is not interested when teams play for the lottery (even though I understand why it makes sense), I would definitely be interested to watch Brown try to lead a team himself. Still, I’m not sure a team of Brown, Simmons and spare parts makes sense to trot out if Durant can instead bring you back a historic haul of firsts that can jumpstart a rebuild, especially with the Nets missing picks after the James Harden trade.
Durant is not going to be traded for a player as good as he is no matter what. But I do think if the Nets move him and the priority isn’t picks, you have to try for someone even younger than Brown with the potential to reach a higher ceiling. If that’s not possible, the Nets are likely better off entering the lottery and trying to find their own Brown (and Tatum) than putting together a team that would essentially be a worse version of last year’s Celtics, and then eventually paying even more for the luxury of keeping that team together.
