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Celtics Fans’ Gutted Reactions to the Jaylen Brown Trade Are Helping Me Process What Just Happened
By Matt Schultz
Published:
Jaylen Brown is a Sixer. On Wednesday evening, new Philadelphia President of Basketball Operations Mike Gansey pulled off one of the most shocking trades in Philly sports history, sending out 36-year-old Paul George, two first-round picks, and two second-round picks for Boston’s 29-year-old All-NBA former Finals MVP who finished sixth in MVP voting last year.
I don’t understand how this trade happened. I don’t get how this was possible. It still doesn’t make sense to me. I’m so deeply conditioned to believe that the Sixers have a dumb front office that gets worked in every trade they make – especially when dealing with Boston – that it’s hard to accept just how much the Sixers won this trade by.
Intellectually, of course, I can comprehend how we got here: Jaylen Brown has been steadily tanking his own value with slightly unhinged Twitch streams; he and Jayson Tatum have had a quiet war going on for a while now; Boston wanted to get Giannis but in the end thought the price was too high (the Celtics simply couldn’t let Hugo González go, lol), etc., etc.
But emotionally… this will take some time for me to fully digest. I’m still jumpy. I’m still waiting for the other shoe to drop. I can’t believe us Sixers fans get to watch meaningful basketball next year. It’s an incredible thing. I guess sometimes incredible things do happen, even for Sixers fans. It is possible… Slowly but surely, I am beginning to process this wonderful gift…
And what’s helping me along is seeing tons and tons of Boston fans online absolutely gutted by this trade. Seeing their reactions is helping me realize: This is real. The Sixers fully, completely fleeced the Celtics. Jaylen Brown is a Sixer:
I’m speechless pic.twitter.com/zBEsQfm3i4
— YIN 🍀 (@luckyy_yin) July 1, 2026
Disgusted. Brad just traded an MVP candidate for a bum and 2 mediocre picks…
— duragthekid (@duragthekid27) July 1, 2026
— GP (@HybridRole) July 1, 2026
I’m devastated.
— Davide Badii (@davibadii) July 1, 2026
Traded our homegrown All-Star, our Finals MVP. In his prime, coming off his best individual season. Traded to Philly, of all teams.
Broke up the best duo in the league, proving all the haters right.
JB, I’ll always support you.
Brad Stevens, you’re on thin ice.
Dead inside
— Trevor Ayotte (@trevor_ayotte11) July 1, 2026
I'm going to hang myself, that shit is fucking terrible
— Nateeeeeee (@nearenoughNate) July 2, 2026
I might need to take a decade off this is by far the worst trade I’ve ever experienced I do not understand it at all
— Max Lubelczyk (@LubelczykMax) July 1, 2026
I might need to take a decade off this is by far the worst trade I’ve ever experienced I do not understand it at all
— Max Lubelczyk (@LubelczykMax) July 1, 2026
I just lost all trust in Brad Stevens, this is deranged
— Will Gooch (@will_gooch) July 1, 2026
This is awful and disgusting and disrespectful. I will know longer watch the Celtics. Had a bad feeling about these new owners and my feelings were right.
— Rh (@Rh199020) July 1, 2026
Matt Schultz is a comedy and sports writer from Philadelphia. He’s written extensively for ClickHole, The Onion, and Conan O’Brien’s Team Coco. His work has been featured in Vulture, Deadspin, The A.V. Club, Paste Magazine, and other publications. Much of his sports journalism can be found on college basketball websites that don’t exist anymore (PhilaHoops Heads rise up…) email: M.Schultz@sportradar.com