3 Jaylen Brown replacements Celtics should target right away

Jaylen Brown replacements for the Celtics: 1. OG Anunoby

This scenario gives the Celtics a defensive upgrade, a win-now boost and a player similarly young with plenty of upside. But there are plenty of complicating factors that could make this a challenge.

At this point, Anunoby is a solid spot-up threat and has shown some juice as a complementary scorer and creator. But he’s nowhere near Brown’s level in that regard and, in his present state, he might be a downgrade for the Celtics offense. It’s possible that Anunoby has more offensive upside than he’s had a chance to show in Toronto and it’s not outside the realm of possibility that he can duplicate a lot more of what Brown did, while simultaneously providing a lot more on defense.

The Celtics might be able to pry an additional offensive asset from the Raptors — say Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr., with Trent guaranteed an extension since he would need to pick up his player option. That would be a lot more palatable for Boston and give them another offensive creator and shooter off the bench to help juice the second-unit offense and create added offensive flexibility. But the problem is Toronto’s asking price.

At the trade deadline, the Raptors were reportedly looking for as many as three first-round picks for Anunoby. That may have been a negotiating ploy but if that really is the kind of package they’re looking for, they may insist on essentially a one-for-one Brown for Anunoby swap. The Celtics would need to take back additional salary to make it work but it would probably be a player with far less utility to either team, say Thad Young and one more fringe bench player.

In that case, the Celtics would, on paper, be getting the lesser overall talent in the deal but betting on Anunoby’s offensive development and whatever they can manage with the flexibility and savings of his smaller contract.

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