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Celtics' Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown eligible for $613 million in supermax contracts after All-NBA honors

jack baer
Staff writer
·2 min read
214

The Boston Celtics didn't play Wednesday, but two of their players still had a very good day.

Both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown became supermax-eligible after being named to an All-NBA team, with Tatum making the first team and Brown making the second team.

Under current NBA rules, players become eligible for the supermax if they have completed at least seven years of service and are named to an All-NBA team either the previous season or both years before it.

Brown is playing his seventh season, while Tatum is on his sixth, though he is guaranteed to be eligible next summer because he made All-NBA this season and last.

Brown is now eligible to sign a five-year, $295 million contract extension this summer, while Tatum will be up for a five-year, $318 million deal next offseason.

The Celtics aren't required to give them either deal, though, and that might be a question with Brown. While he has been a star for Boston for years, it's unclear if the Celtics will want to give him one of the biggest contracts in NBA history given Tatum has always been their clear marquee player. That said, it's hard to think of a better player the Celtics could use that money on instead.

Tatum, however, seems a lock for his deal when he's eligible, barring a massive decline in form or injury.

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - OCTOBER 18: Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics and Jayson Tatum #0 look on during the first half against the Philadelphia 76ers at TD Garden on October 18, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum simultaneously became supermax eligible, though Tatum will have to wait a year. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Ja Morant misses out on supermax

One player who did not line himself up for a massive payday was Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant, who missed out on all three teams after a turbulent season. Had he been named All-NBA, he would have been eligible for a five-year contract worth up to $233 million.

The former second overall pick averaged a robust 26.2 points, 8.1 assists and 5.9 rebounds in 61 games while leading the Grizzlies to a 51-31 record (we don't need to go into what happened later), but he was also sidelined for an extended amount of time after being suspended following a string of gun-related incidents off the court.

Voters apparently felt the Sacramento Kings' De'Aaron Fox and the Portland Trail Blazers' Damian Lillard, the third-team guard selections, were more deserving.

Morant, who made the All-NBA second team last season, appeared to pledge a return to form after the teams were announced.

Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet and Jamal Murray would also have been supermax eligible if named All-NBA, per ESPN's Bobby Marks, but didn't make the cut either.