Chris Mannix on Jaylen Brown supermax extension
A player trade, retirement or All-Star contract extension alone usually constitutes a big day in sports for most cities.
In Boston…all three went down, and then some, on the same day. This may constitute weeks if not months of discourse in most major sports cities. Yet in the new Titletown it was just another Tuesday. But when you’re Boston and expectations are always way above normal, that’s how you do.
The day began around 8 a.m. with New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick addressing the media in advance of Pats Training Camp 2023 opening on Wednesday.
Belichick was his usual self…indirect, evasive, occasionally obtuse and mildly informative. Great to see he’s already in midseason form!
But considering the stakes for himself, his team and some of the pivotal players on the Pats, who find themselves in a loaded and heavily competitive AFC East, this will be no easy task this season. The Pats just endured an immensely frustrating 2022 season, attracting tons of attention for all the wrong reasons. Most of that seems to have been shored up, yet we all know there will be eyes upon his squad from the first snap at camp and all the rest of summer long.
Then…a few hours later, the news hit that one of the best to ever wear the spoked B was hanging them up.
Patrice Bergeron, a staple of the Boston sports scene for two decades, one of the greatest Bruins of all time and a Stanley Cup champion, announced his retirement after 19 seasons in black and gold. Bergeron was beloved for so many things on the ice and in the greater Boston area, not to mention around the league, as tributes poured in throughout the day for a living legend.
His toughness, his competitiveness, his leadership, not to mention his generosity in the community, made him a special representative of the team and the city. While the news did not come entirely as a shock, it still resonates heavily given his impact and length of career. While one and all in Bruins Nation and New England wish his final season ended more successfully, that particular campaign’s end is no measure of the man, player and legacy.
The start of Pats camp AND Bergeron’s retirement would be enough news for a week’s worth of radio, media and firepit discussion. But the day was just getting warmed up, because shortly after 11 a.m., news dropped that while one talented player was leaving the TD Garden, another was committing for major green to stay in green.
Celtics standout, All-Star and Second Team All-NBA player Jaylen Brown reached an agreement with the Celtics on a five year, $304 million supermax deal. This makes Brown the owner, for now, of the richest contract in NBA history. Brown had been eligible for the deal for just over three weeks, but a few contractual hangups needed to be attended to. Once the deal was announced, debate raged as to whether Brown was worth the money and if this was good business for the C’s.
Brown, who had a terrific 2022-23 season, struggled in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals that saw the Celtics eliminated at home vs. the Miami Heat. That game left a sour taste in the mouth of many, which fostered some of the debate over whether or not he was worthy of such a massive salary. But the Celtics certainly believed so, as Brad Stevens told us weeks ago. In the end Brown gets the security he coveted, the Celtics get one of their best players locked up for big money over the next half decade, and this Tuesday got wilder by the hour.
Already more than enough for the day, week, maybe month, you’d think. Just when you thought all was finally quiet on the Boston sports front, the Red Sox decided to enter the chat.
Kiké Hernandez, the hero of the 2021 Red Sox ALCS run, was traded back to his former team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, for two minor league pitchers. The deal was seen as a win for all as Hernandez rejoins the team he enjoyed early career success with, and the Sox get a pair of young arms that can hopefully contribute in the not-too-distant future.
Hernandez was maligned locally this season due to his performance both at the plate and especially in the field, where he struggled mightily filling in at shortstop (he’s a much more competent center fielder). His defensive struggles may have spiraled into his offensive output, if we’re being honest. Some of this can be chalked up to the Trevor Story injury and the Sox having no firm contingency plan at short following the departure of Xander Bogaerts to the San Diego Padres. Hernandez did his best, but his fielding issues likely affected his plate appearances, and the move seems best for all. Hopefully now he reconnects to some of his earlier success, and Sox fans can remember how incredible his 2021 postseason where he practically carried the Sox at the plate was.
So, to recap: a pivotal Pats camp opener…a legendary Bruins bow-out…a spectacular Celtics signing…and a Red Sox swap.
There’s enough to discuss here for quite some time, with impact to come for seasons, if not generations. These are major players and legendary figures responsible for championships, trophies and banners…or ones hoping to be part of the next dynastic legacy.
And yet in Boston…it was a midsummer Tuesday. Go big or go home in the new City of Champions where big news is made daily it seems, right?
Can’t wait to see what Wednesday has in store.
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