The duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have been one of the best in the NBA in the past few years. However, in the few days that have passed since Celtics’ Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Heat, Brown has been a part of some trade rumors. But it’s not something new. After they lost the NBA Finals to the Warriors last year, it was the same. And Draymond Green has come forward to say it’s not the time for the Celtics to break their core up. He cited Michael Jordan and LeBron James, who didn’t win a title in the first 6–7 years of their careers.
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The Celtics drafted Brown in 2016 and Tatum in 2017, both as 3rd overall picks. Since then, the Cs haven’t missed the Playoffs and have never been eliminated in the 1st round, apart from 2021, when Brown was out with an injury. After their loss to the Nets in 2021, they have made it to the Conference Finals in consecutive years.
These reasons are why Green thinks the core should be given another chance.
Draymond Green urges the Boston Celtics to keep the core of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum
In the recent episode of The Draymond Green Show, Warriors’ forward had a suggestion for the Cs. Green, who played a crucial role in getting the championship for the Dubs over the Celtics last year, wants Boston to trust their core. Like Tatum, a concerned Green advocated for the re-signing of Jaylen Brown.
The 2017 DPOY discussed why they must keep Jaylen and trust the process, as winning a championship is not an easy task. He further elaborated that not even Michael Jordan and LeBron James won championships until their 8th or 9th year in the league.
Just watch Draymond talking about it in The Volume.
The Celtics were eliminated because most of their role players did not step up when the primary duo was not hitting their shots. The Heat, on the other hand, prevailed after losing 3 straight games, largely because the players outside their core played at a very high level.
That is why, Green wants the Cs to play around with their role players, instead of the core.
Celtics need veteran/champion leadership
They do have some veterans like Al Horford, Marcus Smart, and Blake Griffin but none of the Celtics players are leaders with a strong voice. Neither in the rotation nor on the bench. They do not have any kind of championship experience.
They could use the presence of somebody like Kyle Lowry for the Miami Heat and Jeff Green for the Denver Nuggets. Even if that player isn’t much of a valuable contributor on the court, they need a voice that has experience with winning.
Not even their 1st year Head Coach, Joe Mazzulla, has experience in winning a ring. That is precisely what they need right now — a champion, with some leadership skills. And also to retain their core together.
