According to ESPN insider Sham Charania, former Celtics teammates Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum last spoke to each other in late June at a dinner in France, ESPN Kris Rhim relays (Twitter link). The conversation took place after Boston’s bid to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo from Milwaukee fell apart.

Brown was the primary piece in the Celtics’ offer and Brown wanted to find out how much Tatum was aware of the trade talks. Charania added that the off-court relationship between the duo changed after the 2024 Finals, when Brown was named the MVP.

Brown wound up getting dealt to the Sixers a short time later. The two teams face each other for the first time this regular season tonight.

Here’s more on the Celtics:

• In an in-depth piece, Rhim reports that Brown wanted to be involved in the process of where he was traded. The Celtics ignored the request before he was sent to the team’s division rival. While Brown bristled at being considered Tatum’s sidekick in Boston, he’s changed his tune with the star-studded Sixers. “I’m the new guy here, so I’m adjusting,” Brown said. “I’m just trying to complement, build off of what these guys have already built here in Philadelphia.”
• In another story on the Brown-Tatum breakup, the Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn notes that the increasing lack of on-court chemistry and Brown’s disappointing analytical numbers contributed to the Celtics decision to trade him. The Celtics front office felt the pairing had become a”relic” that was incapable of winning another championship.
• How does Paul George, the most notable player the Celtics received in the deal, feel about playing against the Sixers? George says he has “no ill will” toward the Sixers organization, Philadelphia beat writer Keith Pompey tweets. “Yeah, had I been here, eight, nine, 10 years, different story. I was here two years,” he said. “Obviously, we didn’t have the best of luck or had a great, I think, partnership in terms of my ability to stay healthy and on the floor. So that kind of played into a lot of it. But obviously, it’s a tremendous fan base, a great sports town to play in. So that was appreciated. But there’s no ill will for me. It’ll be fun to just compete, and outside of that, it’s a normal game.”
• Veteran point man Mike Conley got a chance to start against Milwaukee in Boston’s 20-point victory on Sunday. Though he only played 10 minutes, Conley was surprised by coach Joe Mazzulla’s decision, according to Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog.com. Mazzulla liked the way Conley played defense in the previous game against Charlotte and Tatum and Derrick White felt Conley should be rewarded. “They looked at me after the Charlotte game. They’re like, ‘So you want to start next game?’” Conley said, who joined Boston on a one-year deal. “I’m just like, ‘What are you talking about?’ It’s not really on my radar at the moment, so I thought they were joking, honestly.”