The recent blockbuster swap of Jaylen Brown and Paul George certainly left the rest of the league floored in its wake, and, without the OKC Thunder, it may not have been as simple an exchange to begin with.
Months before the Celtics and 76ers pulled off their shock transaction, Oklahoma City opted to pull the trigger on a deal with Philly for young, promising guard Jared McCain ahead of the 2026 NBA Trade Deadline.
At the time, the move was considered a major win for the Thunder, and with his high-end productivity since arriving in the Sooner State, it only looks to have gotten even better for the club.
However, though the Thunder might have received immediate splendor and gratification from the mid-season trade, it seems the Sixers were playing the long game all along when it comes to experiencing such effects, for, had it not been for the McCain trade, they may not have been in a position to commit to Brown long-term.
Thunder taking Jared McCain helped 76ers commit to Jaylen Brown
At the end of the day, one of the biggest factors that influenced Boston's decision to part with their former Finals MVP was his ludicrous contract figures.
Heading into 2026-27, the All-Star is set to earn $57.7 million in guaranteed salary, and by the time the final year of his pact comes about in 2028-29, he will be making upwards of $65 million.
Top Celtics executive Brad Stevens openly admitted that his high-end salary was the primary reason why the team moved on from Brown's services.
Clearly, it seems that a majority of interested teams were weary of committing themselves to such coin, as the market seemed rather barren leading up to the deal with Philadelphia.
In the end, the 76ers proved to be a solid landing spot for the high-priced Brown due not only to the fact that several promising, should-be core players, including V. J. Edgecombe and recent first-round pick Labaron Philon Jr., are attached to low-cost and rookie-scale deals, but also because they're now no longer on the hook for a McCain extension thanks to his move to the Thunder.
His new deal would have kicked in during the most costly years of Brown's max contract, which, in this new era of crippling tax aprons, could have made things incredibly challenging for the 76ers to navigate through, especially with their well-documented injury history.
While there's a possibility the Sixers could have found another way to make the long-term finances work, at least from a deeper-dive perspective, it seems Oklahoma City deserves some form of gratitude from Philly for their role in helping them land Jaylen Brown.
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