The first Celtics-76ers meeting of the season brought more than just basketball on Tuesday night. It also put Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown back in the same building for the first time since Brown’s move to Philadelphia, and the pregame interaction quickly drew attention.
Tatum walked over to Brown before tipoff, but Brown seemed to wave off his former teammate. That moment was enough for DeMarcus Cousins to take aim at Tatum afterward, saying the exchange felt staged.
“I feel like Jaylen Brown, with the words that he said, he's kind of made it clear, like, we're not cool. There's nothing to really talk about... to me, it was a bit performative.
It was almost like, let me be the good guy in the spotlight while I can make him look like the bad guy in the spotlight. At the end of the day, if you can't have a conversation in private, why have an interaction in public,” Cousins said.
Brown’s exit from Boston already carried plenty of friction. When he was first traded, he made it clear he was unhappy with how the Celtics handled the situation.
“I wasn't thrilled with how the conversation was facilitated. I did feel like it was a lack of respect.
At one point it was fine, and then out of nowhere it just went left. I definitely think there's more to it.
There definitely is more to it. I know Brad is getting a lot of criticism, but I just wish more of it could have been explained.
I just wish they had the respect to tell me exactly what it was, and I would have understood and respected that," Brown said.
That wasn’t the only time Brown took a shot. Just a couple of weeks ago, he also hinted at tension with Tatum while poking fun at his former teammate’s image.
“He’s got a great PR team. It’s no beef, but it might be a little lamb chop.
And some gravy. He should stay ready at all times,” Brown said.
The offseason itself was a busy one, with the 76ers making major moves by trading for Brown and signing LeBron James. But the story around Brown’s departure from Boston never really settled, and Cousins’ comments only added another layer to it.
There’s still no clear picture of who said what behind the scenes. What is known is that Brown reportedly had to confront Tatum about their future together before the trade happened, and just days later, he was sent to Philadelphia.
Tatum also did little publicly to back Brown while trade rumors were swirling, which makes Cousins’ read on the pregame moment even sharper. In his view, the interaction looked less like reconciliation and more like a public show.
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