Jayson Tatum on Jaylen Brown’s cap emoji: ‘I reached out to him the day he got traded,’ and ‘there’s a conversation to be had’

Jayson Tatum scored 36 points to beat the Knicks on Friday night, and then he spent most of three minutes at the podium talking about Jaylen Brown. Asked about the cap emoji Brown had left under a clip of Tatum describing how he learned of the trade, the Boston Celtics star said he has no quarrel with his former teammate and that he tried to reach him the day Boston dealt him to Philadelphia.

“I don’t have any animosity or beef or ill will towards him,” Tatum said. “I reached out to him the day he got traded. I called him, I texted him. And I understand people process things differently.”

The exchange started earlier this week. In his new video series, Tatum said he was stunned by the July trade that sent Brown to the 76ers for Paul George, and that he heard the news in person in Las Vegas. Brown answered under a social media post of those comments with a blue cap emoji, slang for a lie. Hours later Tatum went 14-of-26 with 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals, scoring all seven of Boston’s field-goal points in the final 1:24 of a 107-103 win at TD Garden.

Tatum’s full answer, filmed by Justin Turpin on X.

‘It’s turned into this drama type of thing’

Tatum said what bothers him is how the story of the two stars has shifted since Brown left. “I understand the entertainment business. Me personally, I’m not much of an off-the-court entertainer type of guy,” he said. “I think the frustrating part is, since he’s not with the Celtics anymore, the narrative or the conversations haven’t been enough about what we accomplished. All the games we won, winning the championship, how we’ve grown together. And it’s turned into this drama type of thing.”

He pointed to his age and his family. “I got two kids,” he said. “At this point in our lives, we’re too old to be having our relationship discussed X, Y and Z on the internet.”

He also took aim at fans and accounts building up the first meeting between the teams as a grudge match. “I’ve seen all these things about, get your popcorn ready when they play,” he said, likening the talk to a boxing match. “Play basketball. Like I said, again, there’s no animosity. There’s no beef.”

‘A conversation would solve or put out a lot of fires’

Tatum said he would welcome talking it through with Brown, whenever Brown is ready. “If there’s a conversation to be had, we can definitely have that conversation. I welcome that,” he said. “I’ve always wanted the best for him and wished the best for him. I’ve always publicly said those things.”

“There’s not enough communication, and I think a conversation would solve or put out a lot of fires,” he added. “People process and handle things in their own time. And whenever that happens, it’ll happen.”

Pressed on whether that talk needs to happen, he said it would not have to be a confrontation. “I’m not saying it’s going to be a bad conversation. I just think, especially in sports and in the NBA, sometimes there’s not enough communication,” Tatum said. “Not to blame y’all, but sometimes media or outside can just continue to push or speculate. Rightfully so, that’s y’all’s job. And like I said, he just turned 30. I’m 28. I got two kids. As adults, it’s just a conversation.”

Two different accounts

The two versions still do not line up neatly. At his introductory news conference with the Philadelphia 76ers in August, Brown called their partnership a brotherhood built on a championship, said “there’s ups and downs in any type of relationship” and that on his end there was “nothing but respect.” Asked whether he had spoken with Tatum since the trade, he said: “Not really.” Brown has also said he was unhappy with “the whole process” of how Boston handled his exit.

Tatum’s account does not necessarily contradict that. He said he called and texted, not that the two had talked. Brown, who won Finals MVP alongside Tatum in 2024, had 19 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in his 76ers debut on Tuesday.

The Celtics host the Chicago Bulls on Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET, which is 2:30 a.m. Tuesday in Cairo. The first Tatum-Brown meeting comes on Tuesday, November 10, when Boston visits Philadelphia at 8 p.m. ET, or 3 a.m. Wednesday in Cairo.