Boston Celtics
“He’s a hell of a basketball player. He’s got a great PR (public relations) team. It’s no beef, but it might be a little lamb chops and some gravy.”
Jaylen Brown didn’t put his “beef” with Jayson Tatum to rest when asked about recent developments. Emilee Chinn/Getty Images
October 25, 2026 | 12:06 AM
3 minutes to read
Ex-Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown could have helped extinguish the ongoing petty feud between himself and Jayson Tatum on Saturday night, but he opted not to.
Brown, who sparked online discussion when he appeared to claim Tatum was lying about his shocked reaction to Brown being traded over the summer, said there’s no “beef” amongst the pair of former teammates. Tatum shut down the notion of an existing issue with Brown on Friday night after a Celtics home opener win against the reigning NBA champion New York Knicks.
But Brown, who isn’t willing to put the topic to rest, admitted there “might be a little lamb chops and some gravy” as opposed to beef with Tatum.
“I didn’t see the full thing. But I saw that he said, ‘It’s no beef.’ And I think he’s right. There’s no beef,” Brown told reporters after a Philadelphia 76ers 127-116 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. He recently commented on an Instagram post of Tatum saying he was “caught off guard” by Brown being traded with a cap emoji, which means he thinks Tatum was lying.
“It’s no beef, but it might be a little lamb chops and some gravy, you know what I mean?” Brown, who turned 30 on Saturday, clarified. “He should stay ready at all times.”
Brown insinuated that there isn’t a full-blown rift between himself and the Boston star. Instead, he said that their relationship has its flaws, but won’t go into detail.
Brown didn’t stop there. He gave Tatum his flowers as a person, but went on to say his ex-teammate has a “great” public relations team behind the scenes of this beef.
“You know, Jayson comes from a wonderful family. We’ve accomplished some great things. He’s a hell of a basketball player,” Brown said. “He’s got a great PR team.”
The PR tidbit may infer that Brown believes Tatum is coming across as innocent, while Brown is largely being portrayed as the villain in the media.
Brown repeated there’s no active conflict with the pair, but that he feels a bit sour following the offseason trade and Tatum’s claim to have not known about the deal prior to the rest of the world finding out.
“Just, that’s what it is. No beef. It should never, ever be that,” Brown said. “It’s just basketball. We’re both blessed.
“We might be a little lamb chop. We’ll be alright.”
Tatum attempted to quell the storm the night before when asked by reporters about the situation with Brown. He agreed that there’s no beef and wished the conversation would turn to appreciating what the two achieved together on the court in Boston.
“Like, this ain’t no [expletive] Shaq and Kobe. Like, there’s no beef,” Tatum said. “It’s not about that. It should be more, you know, praise. I understand that … drama gets clicks and views, but I’m not really into — that’s not my thing.”
“I’m not like blaming anybody for how they feel, right? Everybody is entitled to their own feelings, and we all go through different things in our lives,” Tatum added. “Just for me, and I mean, all of y’all kind of saw us grow up and everything that we accomplished, and I don’t want that to be in the rearview mirror of what’s being talked about when it pertains to us, too. It should be celebrated, right?”
Tatum also alluded to potentially attempting to have a private conversation with Brown to try to clear the air.
Brown was asked whether he’d be willing to speak to Tatum on the matter, but didn’t sound as open to the possibility as Tatum did.
“We both got so much stuff in front of us,” Brown said. “At the end of the day, we’re both — he gotta do what he gotta do for his team, I gotta do what I do for my team.”
Brown was dealt to the Sixers over three months ago and the NBA regular season is in full swing. He’s right, it’s time for both to move forward with their respective organizations and goals.
But his response to questions on Saturday didn’t aid in cleaning up the mess. It only enlarged the spill and ensured that both Brown and Tatum will continue to field inquiries about one another as the 2026-27 campaign progresses.
Kaley Brown
Kaley Brown is a sports producer who covers breaking and trending news about the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox.
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