​It’s hard to describe just how out of left field this trade felt when it landed, so let’s let Tyrese Maxey handle it.The nba is doing that THING AGAIN!— Tyrese Maxey (@TyreseMaxey) July 1, 2026When we woke up on July 1, all the talk — including from league sources speaking to NBC Sports — was about how there was no market for a Jaylen Brown trade. The question was whether Brad Stevens and the Boston front office would be forced to tell Brown there was no trade and that they needed to work things out, or whether the relationship was too fractured. Well, we got that answer.Let’s pick the winners and losers from this trade, but first a reminder of who was involved.Philadelphia receives: Jaylen BrownBoston receives: Paul George, two first-round picks (2028, 2031), two second-round picks (2028, 2030)Winner: Philadelphia 76ersPhiladelphia was already a win-now team (Joel Embiid is already 32, the clock is ticking), and it just landed an All-NBA player in his prime, someone who just finished sixth in MVP voting last season. And as a bonus, they got off a contract considered one of the worst in the league in Paul George.Philadelphia got the best player in this trade, and now look at their starting five:PG: Tyrese MaxeySG: VG EdgecombeSF: Jaylen BrownPF: Dean WadeC: Joel EmbiidThere is a price for Philadelphia here, and that starts with Brown being owed more than Paul George, a little over $180 million across the next three seasons — and he’s eligible for a two-year extension worth over $140 million. Then there is giving up the draft picks, there is real value in two first-round picks.But that’s the cost to turn a team into a contender, the 76ers would gladly pay it. And if Embiid is healthy, this team can compete with the Knicks (and maybe Detroit or Indiana or anyone else) to win the East.That’s the definition of a win.Loser: Boston CelticsThe Celtics flat out got worse with this trade.This was a team that won the title a couple of years ago and entered this year’s playoffs as the betting favorite. This trade made them actively worse while Jayson Tatum is in his prime. They are not as bad as some pundits want it to sound — they still have Derrick White, Tatum, George (if he’s healthy), Payton Pritchard and more. This is still a top-six team in the East. But they got worse and are not contenders as we stand here.I’m not in the room and it’s hard to get my head around what Brad Stevens and company were thinking. According to the reporting from people close to the Celtics, Brown did not ask for a trade. Stevens said multiple times that he and Brown had a good relationship. Yet this relationship was somehow so broken that Stevens felt forced to make a below-market offer in what feels like a panicked, rushed trade.It’s not all bad. Boston got two very valuable picks, and George is a solid role player at this point in his career who can help the Celtics, but I don’t get giving up an All-NBA player for this package. It’s not enough. And that the Celt