Celtics fans got an immediate jolt of déjà vu when LeBron James signed with the 76ers. The reaction was easy to understand: Boston had just watched a hated rival land one of the biggest names in the sport, and the path there seemed to run straight through a move the Celtics made themselves.
The connection starts with Jaylen Brown. His addition in Philly helped make James signing there a reality, and that was enough to send Boston fans straight into the same kind of uneasy recognition they felt when Milwaukee’s Jrue Holiday situation eventually swung the Celtics’ way.
That Bucks-Celtics sequence is the obvious comparison. Milwaukee went all-in to improve around Giannis Antetokounmpo and chased Damian Lillard.
Jrue Holiday became the casualty, and Boston was the team that stepped in, acquired him from Portland, and finished off its championship roster. The ripple effect was clear then, and it feels clear again now: one team’s move opens the door for another.
But the two situations are not the same.
The Bucks were making a desperate win-now push when they brought in Dame, and moving Holiday was the price of doing business. Boston’s decision with Brown was different. The Celtics were already looking to move him, and the trade was framed as a move that gave them more flexibility down the road rather than a last-ditch attempt to chase a title.
There’s also the simple fact that Boston did not hand James directly to Philadelphia. Brown went to the Sixers because the Celtics chose to send him there, fully aware of how ugly that might look to their own fanbase.
James, meanwhile, was a 41-year-old free agent, and Boston had no control over where he ended up. The reality, as the piece puts it, is that he was likely going to land with a rival no matter what, whether that meant Cleveland, Miami, or Philly.
So yes, the optics are rough. The Celtics made a move that helped create the conditions for LeBron to wind up in Philadelphia, and that will sit with fans for a while. But the broader point is that Boston took a calculated risk, and the Sixers are not suddenly some unbeatable force because James is there.
It may still come back to haunt them. For now, though, there’s no reason for Boston to panic.
In Other News...
Celtics Just Lost A Summer Standout In A Brutal Two-Way Twist
John Tonjes summer with Boston had been one of the more encouraging subplots of the Celtics offseason, enough to keep his name in the mix as the team sorted through its two-way picture. The guard, who played in six games for Boston last season after arriving as a second-round pick by the Utah Jazz, also turned heads with a strong showing in summer league and gave the staff a reason to think he might stick around longer.
Instead, his next stop changes the Celtics calculus in a hurry. With Tonje no longer part of the equation, Bostons two-way situation becomes a little less crowded as the front office weighs its remaining options and looks at players such as Amari Williams, Dillon Mitchell and Milos Uzan for the spots still available. [Read more 🡒]
Brad Stevens May Have Just Made Bostons Biggest East Threat Even Worse
Philadelphias offseason has already had a Celtics-shaped edge to it, and the latest move only sharpens that storyline. After Boston sent Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia, the 76ers have kept building around a core that now looks far more dangerous on paper, with Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe already in place and the front office clearly betting on a faster climb back into the Easts top tier.
For Boston, the concern is less about one transaction than the way the ripple effects keep stacking up. The 76ers pushed the Celtics to seven games in last seasons first round, and now they have added another layer of star power to a roster that already had plenty of it. If the pieces fit the way Philadelphia hopes, the path back through the Eastern Conference could get a lot steeper for the Celtics. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Fans Just Got The Rival Scenario They Feared Most
The Eastern Conference just got a lot more complicated for Boston, with Philadelphia reshaping itself around a move that instantly changes the balance of power. However the rest of the season plays out, the Celtics now have to prepare for a rival that looks very different from the one they expected when the schedule was set, and the ripple effects go well beyond one marquee addition.
For Boston, the real unease is in what comes next. The Celtics will see this new version of the 76ers often enough to get a close look, and the possibility of a postseason collision adds another layer of pressure to every meeting. What had been a familiar rivalry suddenly carries a far more uncomfortable edge, and that is exactly the kind of scenario Celtics fans were hoping to avoid. [Read more 🡒]