Hey friend,
I’m writing this during the midst of a massive heat wave in New York. If you’re here too, hope you’re staying safe and hydrated while we wait for this to pass.
But speaking of heat, Boston literally just set the sports world on fire. Out of absolutely nowhere, they traded Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia for Paul George and a couple of draft picks.
Honestly, when I saw this news come in I actually thought it was a prank. Why would anyone trade a five-time All-Star and the reigning NBA Finals MVP who just had the absolute best statistical season of his career? The media and fans are calling it one of the worst and most confusing trades in Boston sports history. So I guess I wasn’t completely alone in questioning it.
On a live stream after the news broke, Jaylen openly talked about the total lack of respect he felt from the organization that packed him up. It definitely feels like a bittersweet, shocking ending.
But what I love about Jaylen, and what really gets me beyond the game, is just how incredibly intelligent he is. He is one of those athletes where the second he sits down at a microphone or on a livestream, you stop what you’re doing because you just want to hear what he has to say. We are talking about a guy who literally turned down a NASA internship, lectured at Harvard at a very young age, and spends his summers teaching youth robotics classes. He is an absolute powerhouse of a human mind.
Even after getting packed up by management, Jaylen made it clear that his heart and his community roots, like his 7uice Foundation and all his work with local schools, stay with the people of Boston.
At the end of the day, a lot of us know exactly what it feels like to give your absolute everything to a job, a place, or a relationship, only to watch them let you go anyway. It stings, and it rarely makes sense in the moment.
But one thing I’ve learned is that being let go from a space that no longer values your worth is never the ending it feels like. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, and Philadelphia is getting a hardworking, brilliant player who belongs in a city that embraces an authentic, unpolished hustle over a perfect storyline.
Plus, between Jaylen Brown and Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia officially may have a monopoly on the most profound quotes in sports history.
Welcome to Philly, JB.
wellness tip
Jaylen’s approach to change gives us a real-world wellness tip: lean into the discomfort.
When everything around you changes, the instinct is to run away from the awkward feelings or mask them with fake positivity. But the best thing you can do to adjust to change is to just sit with the friction.
As a Celtics fan, I'm sick he's gone, but wishing the best for him in Philly, even as a rival. Well still be a good team but I still struggle to wrap my head around why we did this trade this way.
“But one thing I’ve learned is that being let go from a space that no longer values your worth is never the ending it feels like.” Is such a powerful line! So incredibly true 😭❤️