DHJ Quick Take: Clippers Surface as a Jaylen Brown Landing Spot in a Multi-Team Giannis Framework
Sources tell Dallas Hoops Journal that one potential framework around a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade would route Jaylen Brown to the Los Angeles Clippers and send the Clippers’ No. 5 pick to the Milwaukee Bucks, with the Boston Celtics landing Antetokounmpo.
- Are the Boston Celtics interested in Giannis Antetokounmpo? Yes. Boston has gained steam recently as a team that appeals to Antetokounmpo, though landing him would likely mean trading Jaylen Brown.
- Which teams have been linked to Jaylen Brown? The Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, and Portland Trail Blazers have all been tied to interest in Brown, while the Clippers had not been a regular name in that group.
- Could the Clippers be a landing spot for Jaylen Brown? Yes. In this framework, Brown would land with the Clippers, with Milwaukee receiving the Clippers’ No. 5 overall pick.
A potential multi-team trade framework making the rounds in league circles would bring Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Boston Celtics and send Jaylen Brown to the Los Angeles Clippers, with the Clippers’ No. 5 overall pick going to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of the return, sources told Dallas Hoops Journal.
Sources framed it as one of several structures being modeled around an Antetokounmpo move, not a deal that is close. Boston would land the star it has been tied to in recent weeks, the Clippers would add Brown, and Milwaukee would come away with a high lottery pick as it starts over.
The pick is the part that makes the Clippers a fit. Los Angeles controls the No. 5 selection through a pick it acquired from the Indiana Pacers in February’s Ivica Zubac trade. That pick was top-four protected and conveyed to the Clippers once it landed in the 5-9 range on lottery night. Milwaukee has been trying to claw back draft capital in any Antetokounmpo return, and a top-five selection answers part of that.
Boston Celtics Surveying Multi-Team Frameworks
Boston has picked up steam as a possible trade destination for Antetokounmpo, sources said, while the Miami Heat remain linked. However, a Boston deal has always faced one complication: the Celtics would almost certainly have to move Brown to land Antetokounmpo.
That is where a third team enters the picture. Most of the talk about a possible Brown trade destination has pointed elsewhere. Sources told Dallas Hoops Journal that the Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, and Portland Trail Blazers are all interested in Brown, as has been reported.
The Clippers have not been a regular name in that group, which is what stood out about the potential framework described to Dallas Hoops Journal.
What Each Side Would Be Weighing
For Boston, it comes down to fit against cost. Team president Brad Stevens has said publicly that the Celtics need more impact at the rim and have to add to get it, a need Antetokounmpo would clearly answer.
The Clippers would be taking on a significant addition in Brown, a 2024 NBA Finals MVP still in his prime, in exchange for a draft pick they might otherwise use to get younger. Brown, 29, averaged 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists in 71 games this season. He has earned 5 All-Star appearances during his 10 seasons in Boston, including in each of the last four seasons.
For Milwaukee, the logic is straightforward. Antetokounmpo, 31, averaged 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists across 36 games in an injury-shortened season, and the Bucks went 32-50 and missed the playoffs. He is a two-time MVP, a 10-time All-Star, and a former champion and Finals MVP, and any return for him is going to be built around young players and draft capital. A top-five pick is the best guaranteed draft asset that Milwaukee can strive for.
The timing keeps all of this moving. The growing expectation in the league is that an Antetokounmpo decision will be made before the NBA Draft, with Bucks ownership pushing to settle it by then. If that holds, frameworks like the one described to Dallas Hoops Journal will be important to monitor as they could shake up the draft.
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