The Celtics ultimately traded him to the Philadelphia 76ers, however.
The Boston Celtics ultimately traded star guard Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers this offseason, but before they did, they apparently had conversations with the Minnesota Timberwolves about a deal.
According to Wolves reporter John Krawczynski, who appeared on the CLNS Celtics podcast, the Celtics were reportedly looking for Rudy Gobert and Naz Reid in a trade, but the T'Wolves felt that was too much.
Ultimately, Minnesota ended up acquiring LaMelo Ball in a deal with the Charlotte Hornets, and they'll pair him with Anthony Edwards, one of the best stars in the league. Minnesota should be very good once again in a deeply talented Western Conference as they try to keep pace with the likes of the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
It would have been interesting to see the trickle-down effect had that deal gone down for the Celtics. For instance, if they had acquired Gobert, does that mean they wouldn't have signed big man Mitchell Robinson in free agency? Would that have meant a different plan for rookie big man Chris Cenac Jr.? Might they not have drafted Cenac at all if they had come to terms on a Brown trade with Minnesota earlier than the draft?
Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) during the first half of game five of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center. Scott Wachter-Imagn ImagesIf the C's had not acquired Paul George, would they have looked for a different wing player in free agency? After all, Reid is 6-foot-9 and known as more of a power forward and center rather than a wing. If they had Reid and Gobert, would they have flipped one of them? Or would they have played an entirely different style of ball that was predicated on more post play?
Well, obviously, the deal never happened and the Celtics will focus on the guys they have when they report for training camp at the end of the month.
The preseason schedule opens up on Oct. 8 and the Celtics will play four preseason games before the regular season opener on Oct. 20 against the Detroit Pistons.
Also in Celtics news
Though the game was much closer than anyone expected it would be, the Team USA Women's Basketball team earned a big victory on Sunday afternoon at the FIBA Women's World Cup in Berlin, Germany.
The Americans toppled Italy, 55-52, to win the game and move to 2-0 in the tournament. They'll have one more game in the Group Stage before moving onto the elimination round.
Team USA is coached by former Celtics assistant Kara Lawson.
