Out of nowhere, the Philadelphia 76ers managed to pull off what was easily the biggest shocker of the offseason, acquiring Jaylen Brown from the Celtics for Paul George and some draft capital. The trade came off as a massive surprise to everyone, especially since the team was not rumored at all as a potential destination for the All-Star wing.
The consensus opinion is that the 76ers absolutely fleeced the Celtics here. Well, that sentiment is shared by the author. However, Philly is actually already on deck to pay a hidden price for their colossal acquisition, that is, the likely stunting of VJ Edgecombe's growth in the immediate future as a scorer due to the team suddenly having way too many mouths to feed on the scoring end.
Between Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Brown, and Edgecombe, the 76ers have four players who could very well average noth of 20 points a night next season. The incoming sophomore's inclusion in that list, however, may be more nebulous than the others. After all, his footing in the pecking order may stagnate with the arrival of the former Celtics star.
The 76ers must pay a hidden price for trading for Jaylen Brown
Make no mistake –– this is in no way an indictment of Brown, who was a bona fide candidate for Most Valuable Player last season with his stellar play for the Celtics. In fact, he took a significant leap this past campaign as an all-around player, averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists for a Boston team which ended the regular season as the No. 2 seed in the East despite missing Jayson Tatum for most of the year.
Brown also became a much better table-setter for his teammates as evidenced by his career-high mark in assists. However, the indubitable truth with this new-look 76ers squad is that there is only one ball. Going by the simple math, even if the touches are equalized on the basis of full proportional exactitudes, there are still way too many guys now ahead of Edgecombe in the scoring hierarchy.
Collectively, this may not even be a non-issue. In fact, there is a strong likelihood that the 76ers will end up being a much better team with Brown instead of George by virtue of their sheer talent level. That, however, entails the curtailment of Edgecombe's projected blossoming as a high-octane scorer on a regular basis to no full fault of his.
The 76ers will undergo a complete shift in dynamics next season. With Jaylen Brown now in the fold, the franchise has more talented than ever, even though their influx of win-now brilliance will inevitably slow down the rousing engine that is VJ Edgecombe.
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