One Western Conference Team Emerges as Frontrunners in Jaylen Brown Sweepstakes

Jaylen Brown has been one of the hottest names on the trade market for weeks. And now that Giannis Antetokounmpo is in Miami, and LaMelo Ball is in Minnesota, the Boston Celtics star feels like the next domino to fall.

And now, one surprise Western Conference franchise is pushing harder than anyone else to land the former Finals MVP.

According to Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, the Portland Trail Blazers are the team “most frequently described as actively pursuing” Brown, with the Blazers having coveted him “dating back to Damian Lillard’s first tenure with the franchise.”

On Saturday, Celtics reporter Brian Robb reported that the Blazers have said Deni Avdija is off the table and that “it would be tough” for Boston to pry away Donovan Clingan. But on Kalshi, Portland’s odds of landing Brown have surged to 21%, more than double any other suitor, including the Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, and Charlotte Hornets.

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The Celtics are reportedly pushing for at least four first-round picks in exchange for Brown. That’s a lot to ask, but Brown is coming off the best season of his career, and the Blazers are one of the few teams with the pieces to actually get a deal done.

They’re expecting an unprotected first-round pick from Orlando and a pick swap with Milwaukee in 2028, plus another pick swap with the Bucks in 2030, in addition to their own picks going forward, including three second-rounders in 2027.

All that draft capital alone could get them in the door, and that doesn’t even include the young pieces they’ve got that Boston might actually want.

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While Robb reported that All-Star Deni Avdija isn’t on the table right now, and that it could be difficult to swing Clingan, they do have other pieces they could package in a deal. A realistic trade might include Jerami Grant, who’s owed $34.2 million next season, along with either Scoot Henderson or Shaedon Sharpe, and another salary matcher like Toumani Camara, who’s owed $18 million in 2026-27.

Portland aren’t immediate contenders, but Brown would finally get his own team as opposed to being the No. 2 option behind Jayson Tatum in Boston.

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This story was originally published June 27, 2026 at 4:00 PM.