Boston Celtics
“This is what people will look at now. They’re going to judge you by this, how you’re going to respond.”
Jaylen Brown playing for the Celtics. Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
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Two-time NBA champion Cedric Maxwell offered some advice to Jaylen Brown in the aftermath of the stunning trade that sent Brown to Philadelphia.
Two years after winning Finals MVP, Brown is no longer a Celtic. “Boston, they packed me up,” Brown said during a recent episode of his live stream.
Shocked by the news, Brown said he stopped by the Celtics’ practice facility to see if his credentials to get in the building still worked. He was denied.
If there’s anyone who can relate to such a situation, it’s Maxwell. He won Finals MVP in 1981 before the Celtics traded him to the Clippers in 1985.
Both Maxwell and Brown were 29 years old at the time of their respective trades. Both had been drafted by the Celtics and had lengthy stays in Boston. Brown had just completed his 10th season with the Celtics.
During an episode of the “Cedric Maxwell Podcast”, Maxwell told Brown that the way he responds in this moment could impact his reputation for years.
“I am giving Jaylen a message. Don’t bash the organization,” Maxwell said. “This is when you’ve got to be — you’ve got to listen to Michelle Obama. When they go low, you go high. This is what people will look at now. They’re going to judge you by this, how you’re going to respond.”
“This is me talking as if I was talking to him right now. I know you want to lash out. I know you want to say some things, but it’s not going to do you any good to get down in the mud. The trade is done. You can’t undo it. Now the reaction is going to be how you are as a player and as a man. That’s going to be a response that you have to take. That’s going to go with you for the test of your career.”
Maxwell played three more seasons after he was traded. He retired after the 1988 season. The Celtics eventually retired his No. 31 jersey and he has been a part of the team’s radio broadcasts since the 2001-02 season.
But there was a time following the trade when things were uncomfortable, especially when it came to silence from his teammates.
“When I got traded, the one thing that I did not get from my teammates, I got nobody to call me. Nobody [said], ‘Hey, good luck to you, man, you played well, you did this.’ That to me was the biggest slap at me.
“Now there’s no excuse because everyone has his cell phone number. Everybody can give him a message. You can do a video. You can do anything now.”
Jayson Tatum has not said much publicly about the Brown trade. Nothing Tatum says can change what happened, Maxwell said. He would advise Tatum to be on the “same page” as Brown in terms of telling the public that they had a great on-court relationship and that he wishes Brown nothing but the best. Tatum made an Instagram post with the following caption:
“9 years! Forever grateful for all that we accomplished together, for pushing me to be a better player,” Tatum wrote. “From first round exits to winning a champ together and respect for you as a player and as a person. Looking forward to see how you attack this next chapter of your career and wish nothing but the best for you! Continue to be special!”
Brown, a five-time All-Star, is coming off of his best season. He finished sixth in the MVP voting and made second-team All-NBA. Now, he heads to Philadelphia to join the team that eliminated Boston from the playoffs.
“How you perform and what you say is going to be big,” Maxwell said. “I think you come in, you thank the organization. We had a wonderful relationship that has ended. I have moved on and I wish them nothing but the best. That’s the only thing that he should say.”
Khari A. Thompson
Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.
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