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Sam Amick: I think the issue with Minnesota is that they have not been given any indication. There's two things. There's not been any indication that Giannis doesn't want to be there long term, but I don't get the sense that he's giving them the sign that he does want to be there. And that is another thing that as we get closer to draft day, I'm wondering with Giannis and his camp, are they going to step on the scale even more than they have to this point? Because right now, it's kind of a loose framing of like, there's a couple of teams that he would be comfortable with being there long-term. And Miami and Boston definitely appear to be two of them. It's like Minnesota's not off the list, but are they on the list? For them, the stakes are really, really high because if you're talking about putting a guy like Jaden McDaniels in the deal, which he would have to be in it, then we need to know that you're all in, big fella. We need to know that it's Ant and Giannis. And not only that, it's the same thing where you can't have it get reported that you put Jaden on the table, only to have the Bucks just go somewhere else with the deal, and now Jaden, from a human standpoint, just feels kind of less committed to, less connected with his current group, and you might change the vibe in your locker room.
Kevin Garnett on Victor Wembanyama: One thing I want to speak on is just Wemby's development. If I'm him, I’m working on core strength because when… Paul will tell you, I'm not the biggest guy, right? But he'll tell you when I sit down and post up, can you move me? Paul Pierce: No, he's strong. Garnett: I'm probably one of the strongest people you could ever run up on and look like how I look, but when it came down there to setting up on that block and then pitching and getting it off down there, yeah, I was the best at that. I would love to work with Big Fella, but this generation has a preference on how they want to work out. And I have to respect that. But yeah, I'm open to all… Listen, I'm looking for big years from not just Wemby. I'm looking for big years from Chet Holmgren. I'm looking for a big summer from Zion Williamson. I'm looking for a big summer from Kyrie Irving. I'm looking for Jayson Tatum to have a big summer.
Speaking of Plan Bs, league sources say the Portland Trail Blazers would have serious interest in Brown if the Celtics made him available. The Blazers have been among the suitors for Antetokounmpo since the February trade deadline but appear to be on the outside looking in at the moment. Also, league sources say the Minnesota Timberwolves — whose pursuit of Antetokounmpo also appears to have cooled — have strong interest in the Celtics’ Derrick White.
In reference to Minnesota's interest in White, which The Athletic's Sam Amick first reported Friday morning, trading him for Rudy Gobert would represent a clear salary match. Sources say that Boston, furthermore, has inquired about Gobert before ... most recently at February's trade deadline.
Kendrick Perkins: I didn't get this from no inside source with the Celtics, but I just feel like at this point Jaylen Brown is somewhat talking himself right up out of that organization with his live stream. And people may say ‘man, Perk, you overreacting or you tripping’. No, I'm not. Because Allie you've been in locker rooms, you played at a high level in college, you covered at a high level. That's why you got all them Emmys. Danny Green, three-time champion. And y'all know like I know that podcasting, that was not going to be tolerated in our locker room because it breaks a trust. Like the most important thing that you need when you're trying to go win a championship is you need trust.
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Zach Lowe: I would still bet on him getting traded before the draft. My favorite reporting in the last week has been ‘sources say MIL doesn’t love MIA offer.’ Really? If they loved MIA’s offer I think he’d be on Miami like two months ago. Miami is in it. Boston is in it to some degree. The degree I’m not entirely sure…. I still think it happens before the draft because MIL will want a 1st round pick in this draft. A lot of teams are trying to get a bite at the apple in the middle of the lottery
Similarly, league sources say the Minnesota Timberwolves — whose Antetokounmpo pursuit also appears to have cooled — have strong interest in the Celtics’ Derrick White.
Then again, the Celtics’ desperation level simply isn’t at the level of the Heat’s. By all accounts, Boston could forge ahead with the Brown-Jayson Tatum dynamic duo and look for other ways to upgrade the frontcourt. To that end, league sources say the Celtics are among the many teams with interest in the New Orleans Pelicans’ Trey Murphy III (if they don’t land Antetokounmpo).
Dru: “I understand that there's this sort of heat around Jaylen Brown and the Boston Celtics. I am not a believer that Jaylen Brown is not going to be a Celtic at the start of the season… I believe there's a very good chance Jaylen Brown is staying put with Jayson Tatum.” @WindhorstESPN
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The Celtics have gone to great lengths to avoid the elephant in the room here, but Jaylen Brown would need to be part of any deal for Antetokounmpo. And if Boston had its way, it seems, the conversation would start and end there with a one-for-one swap of fellow All-Stars who are still in their respective primes (Antetokounmpo is 31; Brown is 29). Lest anyone forgets, Brown is coming off his best season yet, finishing sixth in MVP voting. It’s unclear if the Bucks would look to build around Brown as a centerpiece, as many rival executives have recently predicted, or perhaps rebuild by sending him elsewhere for young players and picks. But whichever path they might select, it’s widely believed that Brown alone wouldn’t be enough for Milwaukee.
Sam Amick: Right now, the sense is that if the Bucks, since it's just me talking, like if the Bucks said all right, Jaylen Brown for Giannis straight up, I think the deal is done. I think the Celtics don't think they should be having to put much if anything else in there. But what tugs at me and I guess why Lou answered the question that way is that like something is driving the Celtics to be interested, right? And they were interested at the deadline. And two things can be true. They can have the utmost respect and love for Jaylen Brown and the player he has become. But I'm one of those kind of actions over words people, and it's like something is keeping the Celtics inspired to remain in this conversation instead of just heading back to their corner and rocking with their team. I feel like maybe they do enough at the last minute to get the deal done, but the safe answer is Miami.
League sources say that Milwaukee has very much been carrying itself like a franchise in recent days that expects to have the No. 13 selection as well as its own No. 10 pick. The Bucks, of course, can only make a selection at No. 13 if they acquire that pick from Miami as part of an Giannis Antetokounmpo trade. Yet we must acknowledge the undeniable rumbles in circulation Wednesday that the Celtics, weary of incessant speculation about a Giannis-to-Boston deal featuring Jaylen Brown, are getting frustrated with the process. One source familiar with the matter insisted that all the "Brown to third team talk" is premature.
I'm told that Portland, back at the February trade deadline, was prepared to sacrifice up to four years of first-round draft capital in an Antetokounmpo trade … even without knowing for sure that Antetokounmpo would commit to an extension. It is strongly believed that the Blazers are no longer willing to go to such lengths — since it has been conveyed to them that getting such an extension signed is considered unlikely — and that perceived retreat has only fueled the notion that Miami and Boston have little current company at the forefront of these sweepstakes.