Former Celtics teammate addresses Jayson Tatum-Jaylen Brown 'disdain' rumors

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Matthew Couden

By Matthew Couden

Contributing Writer

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This past offseason, the Boston Celtics traded away 2024 NBA Finals MVP and All-Star Jaylen Brown in a stunning blockbuster deal with the Philadelphia 76ers.

The move, which brought Boston Paul George along with multiple future draft picks, came after weeks of speculation, including reports that Brown wasn't well-liked behind the scenes and possibly had issues with teammate Jayson Tatum.

However, their former teammate, Grant Williams, recently shut down that speculation, suggesting the media was just creating stories because he never saw any drama or feuding between Brown and Tatum during his time with the Celtics.

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"You can bring the best out of someone else beside you. And I think that’s what it was for those two, is that they had respect for one another, they enjoyed being around one another when they’re on the court, as well as they didn’t have any disdain for one another off the floor, "Williams said while speaking on Sirius XM NBA Radio.

"So that’s something I can just vividly say is that I don’t think those guys disliked each other at all," he said.

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Former Boston Celtics teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown

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Williams, currently a member of the Charlotte Hornets, played for the Celtics from 2019 to 2023. He was traded from Boston to the Dallas Mavericks in July 2023, right before the season the team won the NBA championship and Brown was named 2024 Finals MVP.

It's possible that things changed between Tatum and Brown in their past several seasons, but based on Williams's remarks, he never saw it occur in his previous years with the Celtics.

Rumors from sports networks based on "sources" or clickbait-style social media posts that snip only a piece of a player's comments in a video and suggest there are shots fired or shade thrown are all the rage. That includes a recent live stream featuring Brown in which he commented on his new situation in Philly.

"I love learning. So to have the opportunity to learn from one of the, if not the, greatest player of all time... I get an opportunity to, on the court, off the court, learn and gather experiences that can accumulate to my own knowledge base," he said in his live stream.

While some might claim he was taking a shot at former teammate Tatum, others believe he was more so praising his new teammate, LeBron James, ahead of playing in Philly. Brown previously mentioned feeling "disrespected" with how things went down in his trade from Boston, but neither he nor Tatum has publicly indicated there was an issue between them.

They'll have several meetings between their respective teams in the preseason this October, and their first regular-season meeting is likely later this year, as the NBA schedule is still to be released.

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