At the time the Boston Celtics traded Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers, it seemed like a bold move, potentially an overreaction.
They had tried to use Brown in a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo, but the Milwaukee Bucks had dealt with the Miami Heat instead. So the Celtics traded Brown elsewhere rather than keep him around.
On paper, it was a questionable move, as well -- getting Paul George and draft picks for Brown is a clear downgrade to the Celtics roster of the present.
But maybe there was more reasoning behind it, some of which was provided in a new report by ESPN's Shams Charania on Friday.
"This could have gotten ugly," Charania said.
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Why?
Because Brown was soon enough going to be due to be offered a two-year extension worth more than $70 million per year.
"They knew they were not gonna offer (that)," Charania said. "... and that would have caused a reaction."
It becomes, by that thinking, a way of getting out in front of a problem before it exists.
Maybe that's the smart move for the overall morale of the Celtics, although it's not clear whether this is really going to be a favorite move in the opinion of superstar Jayson Tatum.
It also is questionable in the sense of not helping the team get better now, and not necessarily in the future, either.
In the end, the Celtics clearly felt the "ugly" that could be coming would not be worth whatever would happen before then. There's no way to know the alternate path, though. The Celtics already made up their mind.
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