The Boston Celtics now begin life without Jaylen Brown, and one of the main reasons for this is that under the NBA's CBA, it is extremely difficult to build a roster with two players signed to super-max contracts. But what if the league were to change the financial impact of homegrown super-max contracts?
In his post-Brown-trade press conference, the team President of Basketball Operations, Brad Stevens, proposed a change that I believe all 30 NBA teams would appreciate:
"The new CBA coincided with seven years after the supermaxes were instituted. We may not be sitting here if there was a rule in the CBA that said, 'The guys that you drafted that you signed for 35% supermaxes count as 25% of the cap,' because then that would allow you to build out towards the aprons with a lot less flexibility, or with a lot more flexibility. But the reality is that those are hard to build," Stevens said.
No matter how many posts I see about how Paul George will fit like a glove next to Tatum, he is no Jaylen Brown, who, after being drafted third overall in the 2016 NBA Draft, would develop into an MVP-caliber player and a beloved person in the community.
The past cannot be undone. Brown is in Philadelphia, and George is in Boston. But if an alteration similar to the one Brad Stevens proposed were to take place, teams across the league would rejoice.
Celtics' Jaylen Brown trade proves the NBA has some changes to make
Look no further than the San Antonio Spurs, who made the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014 and built their team by hitting on high draft picks, most notably all-world center Victor Wembanyama and a pair of promising guards in Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper. With the proposed change to the CBA, in a couple of seasons, when these players are up for lucrative extensions, small-market teams such as the Spurs will be able to retain their elite homegrown talent more easily.
If things stay status quo, then the league will have even more activity as teams try to duck the luxury tax apron. The prime example of this is after winning the 2024 championship, the Celtics began to strip their roster depth, losing their entire big-man rotation of Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and Luke Kornet, along with starting point guard Jrue Holiday.
I may be a Celtics homer, but as an NBA fan as well, I want to see the league's most storied teams playing deep into the playoffs. And as a result of the new CBA, not only was the league's most decorated franchise forced to trade its overall depth, but it was also forced to break up the league's best wing duo.
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