There’s no way that the Bucks will throw in additional players or picks in this scenario. The Celtics would need to trade Brown as well as a few draft picks and possibly another player or two. Giannis is one of the best players in the NBA when healthy, regardless of his age right now, and he’s arguably a top 20 player in NBA history. Brown is simply not at that level, even though he is younger and still appears to be improving. I’m just telling you how the actual market is for this not necessarily my opinion.
But it kind of is my opinion too. I’ve brought up a lot of times that there are some players where they pass the eye test, they pass the traditional statistical tests where they are top players in categories, like scoring, etc., but some of them do not do well on advanced stats like on-court/off-court, plus-minus or some of the more complicated metrics. Brown is a good example of this. He is hardly alone in the NBA amongst players where you have this kind of split. There are actually quite a few stars that are like this. Another guy would be Trae Young. Tons of points and assists, but for whatever reason, his numbers are always down in advanced stats, and when the Hawks got rid of him, they improved. That’s not to say you’re better off in a do-or-die game without Trae Young. That’s kind of a paradox.
Brown is not bad when it comes to advanced analytics; he’s just not the same elite player that you get with traditional stats and often with the eye test. It could have to do with his off ball defense or other factors. I honestly don’t really know at this point. He has improved and I think he was very good last season and I’m on record saying that I ate some crow given his performance both last season and his finals MVP showing.
All that said, Giannis is a player that checks every box here. The eye test, the traditional stats, and the analytics. There’s really no question marks anywhere that when he’s on the court, he is vastly improving the entire team and is totally dominant regardless of his supporting cast. I personally do not really like Giannis, I think he’s kind of whiny and I don’t like his game just aesthetically as a fan because it’s mostly just put your head down and full charge to the basket, but it is effective.
This is a very long post, but to sum it up, Giannis is in a different class than Brown and that is understood by any team in this bidding, including the Celtics. That’s not to say Brown is not a great player or is not worth his max contract, but Giannis is the type of free agent or trade acquisition that can alter the NBA if if if he is still the same player as he’s been in the past.
Tatum, White and Giannis would have an absolutely insane efficiency rating and are three of the best plus-minus players in the NBA.
