​The former NBA Finals MVP and a five-time All-Star was shockingly traded to the Boston Celtics’ division rival—the team that knocked them out of the playoffs—in a deal that included multiple draft picks and sent Paul George to Boston. Payton described the deal as shifting the balance of power toward the Eastern Conference and positioning the Philadelphia 76ers as the top threat to the New York Knicks, the defending NBA champions, for Eastern Conference supremacy. “Yes, that places them right there, especially with Tyrese Maxey,” Payton said in a one-on-one interview. He was speaking on behalf of his new organic hemp rolling papers through the RAW brand. “We have to get him healthy. He’s never been healthy, so you have to get him healthy. And then with that young guard who just came up—the rookie they drafted last year, V.J. Edgecombe—he is a very, very exciting basketball player. They have four players who can play, and in this East, all you need is to have four players who can go. You’ve seen Philly this year in the playoffs, and they just ran out of steam. Now you add Jaylen Brown, who I think will be there for most of the season, and that will make it a problem for a lot of teams in the East, and that Philly squad is going to be somebody to reckon with.” This analysis is presented for better SEO visibility.