NBA Rumors: Boston Celtics' former All-Star kept in the loop about trade prospects

After the Boston Celtics joined the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, Jaylen Brown once again found his name being touted in trade rumors.

The initial package that the Celtics offered, as reported by The Athletic's Shams Charania, included Brown, Derrick White and some draft capital.

"The Celtics offered Brown, guard Derrick White and a draft pick to the Nets for Durant, sources said," Charania wrote.

Charania added that the Nets demanded Marcus Smart, whom the Celtics were hesitant to add. However, Boston is going over all of its options.

In response to the trade rumors, Brown tweeted "Smh."

Brown has been included as a trade piece for the Celtics on several occasions. In 2018, Brown could have been a major part of a trade that would have brought Kawhi Leonard to Boston.

However, The Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach reported that the Celtics have kept Brown in the loop about his trade prospects:

"A league source said Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and coach Ime Udoka communicate with Brown “all the time” and have kept him in the loop, adding that Brown seems to understand the situation."

Himmelsbach also wrote that the league source said there currently exists no traction between Boston and Brooklyn over a Durant trade.

How would a Brown-less Boston Celtics fare?

Brooklyn Nets vs. Boston Celtics

While the Celtics have significantly deepened their roster without giving up too much, Brown's departure wouldn't necessarily hurt their championship prospects.

Brown was unequivocally the Celtics' best player in the NBA Finals, but a large part of that can be attributed to how the Warriors defended Jayson Tatum. Brown's position with Boston will largely be to play second fiddle to Tatum.

However, the pecking order in the Celtics lineup has Tatum in the top spot followed by Brown and Smart, respectively. So, if the Celtics were to trade Brown and Smart for Durant, Brown is likely to become the No.1 option in a franchise.

Smart will likely remain in the same place, assuming Ben Simmons stays with the Nets. Tatum would move down a place in the pecking order, and the Celtics would become the indisputable favorites for the title.

The depth or the unstoppable offense could potentially counter the defensive voids created.

The only setback for the Celtics would be trading away a homegrown big three and mortgaging their entire future for one, possibly two, NBA championships.