Jaylen Brown has no plans to reconnect with Jayson Tatum when the Philadelphia 76ers host the Boston Celtics on Tuesday, setting up a reunion centered on competition rather than reconciliation. Brown said he does not yet know how facing his former team will affect him emotionally, but he expressed no interest in addressing the distance between the former teammates.
Speaking after Philadelphia beat the Chicago Bulls 127-121 on Sunday, Brown said he had neither seen nor spoken with Tatum since Boston traded him during the offseason. Brown scored 29 points in the victory. “It's nothing to talk about. I mean, he's on his side, I'm on my side,” he said, explaining that both players are focused on winning.
Tuesday's meeting will be their first as opponents, with their teams holding the top two spots in the Eastern Conference. Philadelphia enters at 9-2, while Boston is 7-2. Asked about the emotions surrounding the matchup, Brown said he would see how he felt once he took the court. For now, he said, he was simply ready to play.
The game follows nine seasons together in Boston, where Brown and Tatum built one of their era's most successful partnerships. Each arrived as the third overall draft selection, Brown in 2016 and Tatum in 2017. They helped the Celtics reach five Eastern Conference finals and two NBA Finals, culminating in a championship against the Dallas Mavericks in 2024.
Questions about whether their games fit together followed them during their Boston years. Both publicly defended their partnership and maintained that they could succeed together, a belief rewarded by the championship. Two years later, Boston sent Brown to Philadelphia for Paul George, first-round picks in 2028 and 2031, and second-round picks in 2028 and 2030.
Their relationship became a public talking point last month after Tatum said on his YouTube channel that Brown's departure had surprised him as much as everyone else. Brown responded on Instagram with a blue hat emoji, a reference to the slang term “cap,” meaning a lie. The following day, Tatum denied there was a feud and said their partnership deserved more praise, while acknowledging that everyone was entitled to their feelings.
Brown offered a different response two days later. Although he also denied there was “beef,” he suggested there “might be a little lamb chops and some gravy.” He repeated his remark that Tatum had a “hell of a PR team” and added, “He should stay ready at all times.”
