Over the weekend, ESPN NBA Insider Bobby Marks came out and said that the analytics community doesn't value now-former Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown like the box score community does.

Brown, understandably, pushed back on that, but what Marks said appears to be rooted in fact. Multiple comprehensive deep dives have indicated that Brown has flaws in his game and that he doesn't add as much value as his points per game totals may indicate.

Furthermore, Tom Haberstroh of Yahoo!, who wrote one of those articles, put this graphic out on social media, saying that the Celtics have gone 90-36 when Brown doesn't play in his career. They are 36-6 in the last three seasons. As noted, that's equivalent to a 70-win team across a full season.

Emotions are running hot on this trade, and it's understandable, considering that Brown is a homegrown star who previously won NBA Finals MVP (2024). Also, the return seems very light for a player with Brown's resume, but for the sake of conversation, let's look at things critically.

Could the Celtics actually improve without him on the roster? And how?

By substituting Brown and by signing Mitchell Robinson, the C's have prepared themselves for a slightly different style of offense moving forward. Jayson Tatum, Derrick White and Payton Pritchard will still make up a very solid perimeter group, but Robinson and Neemias Queta should help them become more active on the glass and better on the defensive interior. They should also help the offense have more of a post semblance.

Brown was certainly capable of getting to the bucket and scoring at the rim, but he was part of the Celtics' jumpshot-shooting culture over the last few years. By removing him and adding Robinson, the team has no choice but to adjust back to the middle, at least a little bit.

As Haberstroh noted in his piece, without Tatum for most of the 2025-26 season, Pritchard had a breakout campaign. He averaged 17.0 ppg and shot nearly 38 percent from three-point range.

Tatum is back full-time next year, but by removing Brown, is there even more room for him to grow? He'll have the ball in his hands a ton, and with increased big man production, there should be opportunities for him to utilize things like the pick and roll more effectively.

Tatum is already an All-League player, but without some of the redundancy created by having Brown on the floor with him, perhaps there's a chance that he can flourish in a different way as well.

That's the hope at least, otherwise all fingers will continue to point at Brad Stevens.

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