Brad Stevens on Jaylen Brown Trade, Chris Cenac Pick — FULL Draft Press Conference

[0:00] I get you guys want to stay here all night and everything. [0:02] I'm here. [0:22] Questions for Brad? [0:25] We will start with Bobby. [0:29] Brad, how close to a deal for Giannis Antetokounmpo did you guys come over the last few days here? [0:38] Yeah, just like any other time, I'm not going to talk about, you know, those types of things, right? [0:45] We'll do it if we ever have a deal and we're ultimately allowed to talk about it. [0:52] But I'm not going to go into any specifics on that. [0:56] What has the communication been like with Jalen Brown over the past few days or the past week this offseason? [1:11] Yeah, how are you guys? [1:12] We've been, we've met, we had a couple meetings earlier, end of May, also before he went back overseas a couple days ago or 10 days ago or so. [1:24] Spent a lot of time, just the two of us sitting down together and then have been, like every offseason, [1:30] in regular touch with his agent all the way through the last couple of days. [1:36] And, you know, obviously with all the rumor mill and all that stuff and name being splashed all over the place, you know, that's not easy. [1:44] But we certainly wanted to be as proactive and up front with that as possible. [1:49] And I thought we had really good, candid conversations. [1:56] Brad, is Jalen Brown going to be on this team at the beginning of next season? [1:59] Jalen Brown's a big part of us. [2:01] Like, you know, I'm not going to, I'm never going to predict the future. [2:05] But, like, every indication, everything that I think about is with over the past few years has been building around those guys. [2:12] Right? [2:13] And so, obviously, you never know. [2:16] But at the same time, I think the one thing I want to make very clear is how valued he's always been. [2:23] Like, and he's been amazing. [2:26] He's been an amazing teammate, great person to be around. [2:29] And, you know, whether that run ends 10 years from now, when he retires or before, there's a lot to celebrate. [2:39] And, you know, we have a great relationship and an open relationship where we talk about everything. [2:48] But I don't want to predict the future. [2:51] But, you know, I look at it as this is our team. [2:55] Do you believe that these trade rumors have impacted the relationship with Jalen at all? [3:03] And, secondly, he's eligible for an extension. [3:05] Is there a plan to give him that this offseason? [3:07] We would never talk about contract stuff publicly, obviously, until those are signed and or when it's appropriate. [3:18] And I would say you would have to ask him. [3:22] I mean, it's not fun. [3:23] And I'm empathetic towards that. [3:25] It's not fun to be through that. [3:29] And at the same time, I think my job is to be as candid and upfront as possible prior to and have done, tried to do that. [3:41] Brad, what caught your eye with Chris and the scouting process? [3:43] And why do you think he'll be a good fit here? [3:46] Well, he's just a good young player. [3:51] Energetic. [3:52] Plays hard. [3:54] Excellent athlete. [3:56] Long. [3:57] You know, fits a position of need. [3:59] Some things that we were a little short on this year from an athletic perspective, I think, with his size and his length. [4:08] And he is, when you play in the program he's played for, he's been through, he's been taught well and been held to a high standard. [4:19] And so I like that. [4:21] And he will undoubtedly come here and be eager to jump into it. [4:27] He's a good worker. [4:28] He's a good person. [4:29] And he's got a lot to learn, but we're excited about starting that process with him. [4:35] Back on Jalen, he said on his stream last month that if it was up to him, he'd be in Boston for the next 10 years. [4:43] From your conversations with him this offseason, do you get the sense that that's changed? [4:46] Does he still want to be here? [4:47] I'll always keep our conversations private. [4:50] You know, it's just, I think it's appropriate, regardless of what the content of those conversations are like. [4:56] But, you know, I think what I said is really true. [5:01] I don't love the fact anytime it's a big public thing. [5:07] As you know, we try to keep things as close to the vest and quiet as possible. [5:12] And at the same time, you know, knowing that the rumor mill is the rumor mill and there's going to be a lot of noise out there, [5:22] that's why you try to also meet and be up front as possible. [5:25] But, yeah, like, listen, I can't say enough good things about Jalen, but I certainly am empathetic towards probably what that's felt like. [5:40] Right. [5:41] In that conversation with Jalen, did you have to be more of a listener? [5:46] Did he have a lot to say about perhaps some of his issues, or was it more mutual? [5:52] Yeah, again, and I don't mean to sidestep your question. [5:55] I just won't get into the, like, always keep these conversations private. [6:02] And this is not unusual to, you know, we had 10 guys in the gym this morning. [6:09] You know, almost all our team was here at one point in time in the last two weeks. [6:15] And so I'm either meeting with guys in the weight room, on the court, as you see when you walk in, [6:20] or in my office, or in the meal room, almost every day. [6:23] So it's not an unusual deal. [6:26] But we just, you know, I think that ultimately, you know, I just want to be as candid and open as possible and available as possible. [6:35] But from a content perspective, I'll keep that between us. [6:38] And it seems like he, I mean, you're, you said you're empathetic with what he might be going through. [6:44] Yeah, just the noise surrounding all this is, yeah, it's, I get it. [6:50] I get it. [6:51] And, again, I think what I hope to do is just be up front. [6:57] And then, you know, as reachable as possible throughout all that, and as available as possible throughout all that. [7:05] Adam? [7:06] Obviously not getting into details about the conversations, but having spoken to him and had the dialogue over this time, [7:13] how do you feel just kind of about the status of this partnership that you guys have had for this period and presumably will continue to have? [7:22] Yeah, I mean, I think that any time, there's always going to be, have to be conversations. [7:29] There's always going to have to be get-togethers. [7:31] There's always going to have to be things that you talk about. [7:35] Very certain that, again, it's not easy to be in the national rumor mill, right? [7:43] And so I, like, again, I'm extremely understanding of that. [7:49] And so, yeah, I think there always has to be discussions, but, again, I just keep going back to this. [7:57] This is why I just try to be as up front as possible and as candid as possible at the beginning long before any talks begin [8:06] so that, you know, our guys understand that being here and being in the limelight, you know, [8:14] they're going to have a lot of attention on them regardless. [8:16] And then, you know, they also understand that there are things that are exaggerated at this time of the year [8:24] and there are things that are real. [8:26] And so they've been through all that stuff and they kind of have felt all that stuff, but it doesn't mean it's easy. [8:35] Brad, we've gone over this a lot with the second apron, first apron. [8:39] How do you see these challenges evolving? [8:42] A lot of people talk about can you have two max contracts anymore? [8:45] As you see the evolution of what you're trying to do, how do you see that challenge kind of developing moving forward [8:53] and how teams can be built like that? [8:56] Well, I think, you know, we've been really lucky because our two guys, both guys, are very good, you know, [9:03] and I think that that's the number one key if you're going to have those big contracts [9:08] is that they're both excellent players that on any given night, you know, can put 40 on the board and carry you. [9:19] And then with that, you just have to be good around the edges of the roster. [9:26] That's easier said than done, but I do think that it's very doable. [9:31] But the key goes back to if you're going to do it, you've got to do it on those guys, [9:34] and those guys have been great. [9:35] They've both been, you know, amazing and deserve every part of it, [9:40] and I think will continue to be amazing. [9:45] Brad, last time I talked to you, you talked about having time to kind of do deeper dives [9:49] in terms of where you guys are at with the exit. [9:53] Now that we're heading into the free agency now, what is the biggest priorities for you going forward here? [9:58] And have you changed your thought process on what you guys need in the last few weeks? [10:03] I mean, I think the same stuff is – I think we need the same – [10:06] I think we're going to look at – continue to look at size. [10:09] And then I do think that we will look to add, you know, and we'll see how tomorrow goes. [10:14] We have a pick in, I think, number 40, right? [10:16] And so, you know, whether that is somebody that we ultimately roster or two-way or whatever, [10:24] we'll figure all that stuff out. [10:26] But I do think that size and then I would like to add maybe one more person with some speed on the perimeter. [10:36] Just wondering how Jason's health is doing, especially as we get deeper into the offseason [10:39] and just how his spirits are. [10:41] Yeah, he's been good. [10:42] He's been good. [10:43] He actually started – a lot of these guys, a lot of the younger guys have been here [10:48] because they're ramping up to play in summer league or to just, you know, [10:51] we haven't been done as early as we were done in a long time. [10:55] So they actually went away for a while and then came back for a couple weeks. [10:59] And so they've spent a lot of time together. [11:01] And Jason joined them last week to start to ramp up. [11:06] He's got some travels coming up. [11:07] He might be out of town already. [11:09] But he's got his camp coming up, and I think he was excited about getting on the court [11:13] with some of those young pups a little bit. [11:16] Hey, Brad, right over here. [11:17] You mentioned countless times that the expectation of the Boston Celtics are to win championships. [11:22] So do you believe that Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown together on the Boston Celtics [11:26] are still able to bring that to Boston? [11:28] You touched on it earlier, but how much did the benefits of playing for Coach Sampson, [11:36] what you saw there, his growth, influence the decision to take a chance on a prospect who's raw [11:41] but has high upside? [11:44] Yeah, I mean, I think he's got a lot to learn. [11:47] He's got a long way to go. [11:48] He's got a lot of room to grow. [11:50] But, you know, when you're that age and you are that ballyhooed coming out of high school [11:57] and then you go and you play for Coach Sampson and he does not let you off the hook for one mistake [12:04] over the course of a full year, right? [12:07] And in everything that we've learned about Chris and everything that Coach has told me [12:11] is that he was pretty hard on him and he was on him. [12:14] And all he did was come to work. [12:18] And I think that that's a really impressive quality for a young guy. [12:22] When I watched him play live several times this year, you know, I never walked out of the – [12:29] he didn't always play well. [12:31] But I never walked out of the gym thinking he played – he didn't play hard. [12:35] And he didn't really, really, really go after it. [12:38] And so I think that's a good place to start. [12:40] Yeah, Brad, on Chris as well, a lot of the draft analysts kind of view him as sort of a project type player. [12:52] Do you view him as someone who could contribute this season or is this more of a kind of longer term play? [12:58] You know, I hope we're good enough that it's hard for any 18-year-old or 19-year-old to come in here [13:03] and be really good out of the gate. [13:05] I think that usually is more about their own personal development and growth [13:10] and learning how hard it is and learning how to be a part of a team [13:13] and learning, you know, how we work and how we, you know, go about it every day. [13:18] And then if they can add value, that's great. [13:21] But there won't be any expectation of that from my standpoint. [13:24] There certainly probably is a lot of excitement and expectation from his. [13:28] But, you know, we were sitting here last year [13:31] and I didn't think the guy that we drafted would play at all for us. [13:35] But you never know. [13:36] Let's see. [13:37] We'll see how they all come in and work. [13:39] And he'll certainly have the opportunity like everybody else. [13:42] But you're behind when you're 19 and you're dealing with now men. [13:50] Brad, in a general sense, you've been dealing with young men for 20 years. [13:54] Longer. [13:55] Longer than that, yeah. [13:56] Yeah. [13:57] I mean, since you were a young man, when they maybe disagree [14:01] or when they have some concerns that maybe you weren't aware of, [14:05] how do you generally deal with that? [14:07] When a player seems to be unhappy and you weren't maybe not aware that he was unhappy [14:12] or when he has concerns that you might not have been aware of, [14:15] how do you deal with those conversations with that particular player [14:20] in terms of, like, the smooth things over? [14:25] Well, I don't know necessarily what you're asking [14:30] or the context in which you're asking it. [14:32] I'd say I try to be as observant as possible. [14:37] I'm here a lot. [14:37] I'm around a lot. [14:39] I think I've got a decent pulse on our building. [14:44] And then I just want to listen. [14:46] And I just want to be a good teammate and try to help. [14:50] And that's my role in that moment, I guess. [14:55] But I think that, you know, again, we have a lot of people in here, [15:00] whether they've been here for one year or, in Jalen's case, 10, [15:04] or in Mike Zarin's case, 20, right, where you – [15:08] there's a lot of, you know, a lot of time spent together [15:12] and a lot of relationship there. [15:13] And so hopefully you can have candid conversations. [15:18] Thank you, Brad. [15:18] Thank you, everybody. [15:19] Thank you.