Mannix: C's weren't interested in Jaylen Brown-James Harden trade

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The James Harden saga came to an end Wednesday as the Houston Rockets traded the superstar guard to the Brooklyn Nets in a multi-team blockbuster.

On paper, the Nets now appear to have a roster that will propel them to the top of the Eastern Conference. The Boston Celtics also were rumored to be in contact with the Rockets about Harden, which begs the question: should Danny Ainge have done more to bring the former MVP to Boston?

Winners and losers from massive Harden trade

If you answered "yes" to that question, such a deal likely would have required the Celtics to part ways with rising star Jaylen Brown. Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated said on Wednesday's Early Edition that was a move Ainge was not interested in making.

"Under no circumstances if you're Boston do you make any kind of offer that includes Jaylen Brown. That was really the Celtics' mindset for the last couple of months. There was no significant interest in a deal that involved Jaylen Brown. The Celtics are simply operating on a completely different timetable than the Brooklyn Nets. Their stars are Kevin Durant at 32 [years old] and Kyrie Irving at 29. You've got the Celtics with [Marcus] Smart, [Jayson] Tatum, Brown, a whole bunch of younger guys they're trying to develop in their mid to early 20s.

"Everybody wants the Celtics to get to the Finals this year but their window is over the next four or five years whereas the Nets might just be two or three years right now. They were in a much more advanced position to need to roll the dice and make a deal like this. I think there's certainly a combustibility to all this, but a happy Harden playing with a player in Durant who he's wanted to pair back up with for a while now, it's a risk that has an argument for taking."

The Celtics currently sit atop the Eastern Conference with a 7-3 record. Brooklyn is 6-6 and currently dealing with the mysterious absence of Kyrie Irving, who is rumored to be "furious" with the organization.

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