Brad Stevens has made a number of successful deals during his tenure as Celtics president of basketball operations but one near-miss caught the eye of Bill Chisholm. The new Celtics owner revealed to the Boston Globe that Stevens had his eye on Knicks star Jalen Brunson with his previous team in Dallas earlier this decade.
“He returned to Boston to meet with president of basketball operations Brad Stevens, and Grousbeck placed the 2024 championship trophy on a conference table to set the tone,” Adam Himmelsbach wrote. “Stevens projected his computer screen onto a wall and shared a rare glimpse into his basketball mind. He described how big deals were finalized, and why others crumbled, such as a near-miss for then-Mavericks point guard Jalen Brunson. Chisholm was captivated.”
Brunson spent the first four seasons over his career with Dallas, meaning the proposed deal would have had to have happened before the summer of 2022. Brunson was a backup during his first three years in Dallas before breaking out as a starter during the 2021-22 season. He went on to sign a four-deal deal with New York worth $104 million in the summer of July 2022. Since then, he’s been named to two All-Star teams and All-NBA Second Teams.
After missing out on Brunson, the Celtics went on to deal for Spurs guard Derrick White at the 2022 trade deadline in exchange for Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, a 2022 first-round pick and a 2028 pick swap (top-1 protected). The acquisition led to a remarkable midseason turnaround for Boston under Ime Udoka and an appearance in the 2022 NBA Finals. White has gone on to become an integral part of Boston’s core for the past three seasons.
That success with White likely does not leave Brad Stevens with any regrets about the failed transaction. However, Brunson’s ascension as an MVP candidate in New York is another example of Stevens’ eye for talent. His ability on that front will be put to the test in the coming months as he looks to retool the Celtics as a contender around the looming return of Jayson Tatum from a torn Achilles.
