Jaylen Brown did not take kindly to Stephen A. Smith’s recent critiques of him.
After the Boston Celtics postseason exit, Brown hopped on Twitch to vent his frustrations with the officiating. The outburst earned him a $50,000 fine, but rather than backing down, Brown later doubled down on his critique.
Brown claimed this was his “favorite season” of his career. It was a surprising admission that turned heads across the league, especially since it came just days after a disappointing elimination and only two years after his 2024 championship run.
“I hate that our president of basketball operations even had to respond to this,” Brown said. “Me and Brad have a great relationship. I love Boston. And if it was up to me, I could play in Boston for the next 10 years.”
Smith took time to addresse Brown’s comments on ESPN’s “First Take.”
“You got knocked out in the first round,” Smith said. “The Boston Celtics, one of the top two most storied franchises, if not the most storied franchise in the history of basketball, lost a 3-1 lead for the first time in its postseason history.”
“The first order of business is that he needs to be quiet and… go on vacation unless you’re trying to get traded,” Smith continued.
Brown responded to Smith on social media.
“I’ll ‘be quiet’ / stop streaming if you ‘be quiet’ and retire let’s give the people what they want,” Brown wrote on social media.
Of course, Smith would let that one slide.
“Bro, I got love for you so I’m not going to even go there. Folks are looking out for you and you don’t even realize it. Here you are making this kind of noise and it hasn’t even been a week since you lost a 3-1 lead. You’re HOME. A champion and a Finals MVP saying his favorite season is the season he’s home in the FIRST ROUND. This is not about ME. It’s about YOU….and what YOU SAID. Enjoy your offseason.”
Brown also expressed his regret for Brad Stephens having to address the situation at press conference.
“I hate that our president of basketball operations even had to respond to this,” Brown said. “Me and Brad have a great relationship. I love Boston. And if it was up to me, I could play in Boston for the next 10 years.”
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