If Jaylen Brown Wanted to be Traded Out of Boston, Should the Hawks Pursue?

Jaylen Brown is a possible trade candidate this summer and given his Atlanta connections, should the Hawks pursue?

Mar 30, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) dribbles against Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) in the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mady Mertens-Imagn Images | Mady Mertens-Imagn Images

There are only eight teams still alive in the 2026 NBA postseason and 22 teams are at beginning their offseason plans and trying to figure out what to do to build themselves into contenders for next season and beyond.

Two of those teams are the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics. The Hawks had a successful season all things considered and even though they were dominated in the final three games of their series against the Knicks, there is a lot to look forward to for this team going into next season.

When you look at the Boston Celtics season, it is more complicated. After coming into the seson with low expectations, Boston exceeded them, winning nearly 60 games, getting the best season of Jaylen Brown's career, and Jayson Tatum coming back from injury. However, they were the favorite to win the Eastern Conference, but blew a 3-1 series lead against the 76ers and now they are trying to figure out what's next.

Will Brown be part of what is happening next in Boston?

It sounds crazy to say, but there have already been murmurs about whether the Celtics could move Brown, but his comments since the game seven loss to Philadelphia have raised questions. In a Twitch strea, the day after the loss to Philadelphia, Brown criticized the officiating (for which he has been fined $50,000) and said that this past season was the most fun of his career, omitting two seasons ago when the Celtics won the NBA championship.

Bill Simmons said on the latest episode of his podcast that he does not think that is a good sign:

New BS Podcast with @getnickwright
—Apps: Jaylen’s Boston future; LeBron, age 41; the T-Wolves are America’s (New) Team; a Spurs wake-up call; Wemby.
—Entree: 2026 NBA Lottery Karma Rankings… who deserves to win on Sunday?

Spotify (or Netflix) ⬇️https://t.co/QETxS4RxXC

— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) May 6, 2026

"My takeaway after that is he's probably okay with moving on," Simmons says. "The way the season ended, there's no way that could be your most fun year."

Simmons and his guest Nick Wright also mentioned that the Hawks were the team that made the most sense in a three-team trade where Giannis lands in Boston and the Hawks send pick to the Bucks and Brown lands in Atlanta.

Simmons is not the only one. Tracy McGrady had this to say about Brown's potential future in Boston. Tracy McGrady had this to say on his show with Vince Carter:

“I think his frustration lies deeply in the organization that we don’t have the details to… There’s just been a lot of stuff that I’ve been hearing, just going on with the Boston organization with JB.”

Jaylen Brown is “deeply frustrated” with the Boston Celtics organization, per @Tmac_213

“I think his frustration lies deeply in the organization that we don’t have the details to… There’s just been a lot of stuff that I’ve been hearing, just going on with the Boston… pic.twitter.com/W9EgpUdFvP

— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) May 6, 2026

Now, this does not mean that Brown is going to get traded, but there is plenty of speculation about his future with the Celtics.

If, and I stress if, the Celtics decide to move on from Brown, should the Hawks make a move for the Atlanta native?

Why Atlanta should not trade for Brown

I don't think the Hawks should trade for Brown, and I can point to Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh's own words about this franchise not being one player away right now and they are going to focus on development.

"We are not one player away from this; the best iteration of this team is going to be through development and our players currently getting better. We're really excited about the future and what holds there, from the draft to the flexibility moving forward, all that stuff. We're in a good place, position set up moving forward, and our coaching staff has just been remarkable this year."

If the Hawks wanted to trade for Brown straight up and not in a multi team trade, it would cost them a lot in terms of draft picks and players on the roster. Atlanta needs to remember what it cost them to trade for Dejounte Murray in 2022 after they lost in the first round to the Miami Heat and how much it set the franchise back, thought they have done an admirable job of digging out of that hole.

Brown had an amazing season for the Celtics, but what would the Hawks team look like after a trade for him? Would they be able to contend for a championship? They could be ready to contend in the East, but when you are making a trade like this and depleting yourself of assets to build for the future, you have to be ready to compete for the championship, which I dont think would be the case.

The Hawks have an advantageous set up to continue building this team. They have Jalen Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Onyeka Okongwu, and Dyson Daniels on their team, they have pathways to have plenty of space to add to their team this offseason, and depending on how the draft lottery goes on Sunday, the Hawks could have the No. 1 pick or a top four pick in a highly anticipated draft class with four elite prospects at the top.

This does not mean that the Hawks need to stand pat and think that their team is good enough as it is, but making a big move for Brown does not strike me as something that Onsi Saleh is going to do and the smartest way to build their team.