Brian Scalabrine has added a fresh burst of fuel to the Jaylen Brown-Jayson Tatum storyline, and now the whole NBA is weighing in.
What started as a messy little “not beef” between two former Celtics stars has turned into one of those league-wide conversations that refuses to sit still. Tatum tried to cool it down by saying over the weekend, “this ain’t no Shaq and Kobe.” But the latest comments from Scalabrine have pushed the situation in the other direction.
On Monday, while speaking on his Sirius XM radio show, the former Celtics player and current team television analyst said his understanding was that Brown had pushed for a move out of Boston.
“My understanding of this thing is that [Brown] demanded to be traded. Not to the media, but to the organization,” Scalabrine said.
“... My understanding is Jaylen Brown went to the organization and had a list of demands.
And it was like, ‘You either do this or you trade me.’
“And he was rooting to get traded to Milwaukee, including calling some other teammates about, ‘Hey, man, what do you think of Milwaukee? We should go there.’”
There is, as of now, no separate reporting backing up Scalabrine’s claim that Brown asked out and tried to line up a move to the Bucks. Still, because Scalabrine works around the Celtics and has access most people don’t, the remark lands with some weight - even if it also comes with the obvious organizational lens.
For Brown, the practical problem is simple: whether the report is true or not, he’s probably going to get asked about it. That likely means Tuesday morning at the 76ers’ shootaround before their next game against the Pacers.
This didn’t have to snowball like this. The chatter around Brown and Tatum could have stayed in the realm of speculation, but Brown helped keep it alive when he replied “cap” under a post featuring Tatum saying he was surprised when Brown was traded to the 76ers. Brown then leaned back into the subject over the weekend, saying “there’s no beef” with Tatum but there is “a little lamb chop.”
The players insist there are no personal off-court issues. Even so, the drama is real enough for the rest of the league to keep picking at it.
ESPN’s Marc Spears said Monday that the Celtics “favored” Tatum, and Brown “felt some way about that.” Former NBA All-Star John Wall added to that line of thinking, suggesting Brown may have taken issue last season when Tatum returned from injury and was introduced last in the Celtics’ starting lineup, a slot usually reserved for the franchise centerpiece, even though Brown was playing at an MVP level.
Jeff Teague, who was with Tatum and Brown during the 2020-21 season, called it “competitive tension.” Lou Williams, for his part, loves the whole thing.
That’s the reality now: a rivalry that the NBA can’t help but stare at, and one that makes an early November meeting between the Celtics and 76ers even more interesting in a couple of weeks. But if the story keeps growing, Brown is the one who may have to carry the burden of it - especially if he ends up having to answer the biggest question hanging over all of this: did he request a trade from the Celtics?
In Other News...
Kelly Oubre Is Giving Sixers Fans A Familiar Feeling In Indiana
Kelly Oubre Jr. landed in Indiana on a two-year contract hoping for a fresh start, but his first two games have looked awfully familiar to anyone who watched him in Philadelphia. He has averaged 3.5 points, two rebounds and 2.5 assists while struggling badly from the field and beyond the arc, a rough opening that has already put his shot selection and rhythm back under the microscope.
For Sixers fans, the early returns may feel like dj vu because the same outside-shooting issues followed Oubre through three seasons in Philadelphia, where he hit just 32 percent from three. If that trend keeps up with the Pacers, his fit there could become a much tougher sell, and his value may shrink as Indiana tries to sort out where he fits in the rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Joel Embiid May Have Found What Unlocks The 76ers Offense
Joel Embiids offensive role has shifted in a way that could matter a great deal for the 76ers, especially as Nick Nurse keeps looking for cleaner ways to organize the attack. Instead of living almost entirely as a finisher on the block, Embiid has been used more at the top of the key and in the high post, where he can see the floor and set up teammates. The result has been a more varied offense, with Embiid averaging a career-high 5.7 assists per game while taking fewer shot attempts.
The change has also given Philadelphia a different kind of fallback when the offense bogs down. Embiid handled primary playmaking duties in a recent game in which LeBron James was out, and he responded with a triple-double, a reminder that his value does not have to come only from scoring. For the 76ers, the real question is whether this expanded role can keep unlocking the same kind of balance when the games get tighter and the defensive attention gets heavier. [Read more 🡒]
Anfernee Simons Could Decide One Huge Sixers Roster Question
Philadelphias three-point issues have become hard to ignore this season, with the 76ers connecting on just 31.7% of their attempts from deep. That has put a spotlight on Anfernee Simons, whose reputation as a dangerous shooter makes him one of the more intriguing possible answers to a problem that has lingered around the roster.
Simons also carries a bigger question with him, though, because his fit and production could end up shaping a major decision for the front office. If he delivers the shooting punch the Sixers need, he becomes a much cleaner piece to build around, but if he falls short, his sizable salary could make him a trade candidate and leave Philadelphia weighing another difficult roster move. [Read more 🡒]