Since the Boston Celtics‘ first-round series loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, Jaylen Brown has gone live on Twitch multiple times — discussing the upset loss and airing his grievances with NBA officiating.
Brown’s public criticism of NBA referees resulted in a $50,000 fine.
Brown also made waves around the NBA world with another comment, saying this past season was his “favorite” year of his professional career. Brown, who earned Finals MVP while helping the Celtics to a championship in 2024, spent the majority of the 2025-26 season as Boston’s No. 1 option as Jayson Tatum recovered from his torn Achilles injury.
ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith called Brown out during Thursday’s episode of “First Take.”
“24 hours after losing a 3-1 lead and says this was his favorite year. You can’t do that,” Smith said. “The year that Jayson Tatum is down with an Achilles tear is your favorite year?
“He needs to be quiet. … Unless you’re trying to get traded.”
Brown fired back with a message of his own.
“I’ll ‘be quiet’ / stop streaming if you ‘be quiet’ and retire let’s give the people what they want,” Brown responded on social media.
Following the Celtics’ Game 7 loss, NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady suggested that Brown is “deeply” frustrated with the Boston organization. Celtics president Brad Stevens quickly downplayed that notion during a press conference on Wednesday.
Brown addressed those rumors during his most recent Twitch stream on Wednesday night.
“Lot of stuff swirling around the Celtics and the organization. Hate that our president of basketball operations even had to respond to this. Me and Brad have a great relationship,” Brown said. “I love Boston. If it was up to me, I would play in Boston for the next 10 years.”