Jaylen Brown Says There Is "Nothing To Talk About" With Jayson Tatum Before Their First Game As Opponents

Brown and Tatum hugging each other during their time in Celtics© Instagram/@bleacherreport

Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will finally face each other on Tuesday, and neither wants to make it a reunion. The 9-2 76ers visit the 8-2 Celtics in the first meeting between the former teammates since Brown was traded to Philadelphia this offseason. After nine years together in Boston, the two have not spoken since the split. Brown has little interest in a pregame chat, and Tatum is calling it just another game on the schedule, so the tension is set to stay on the court.

Brown shuts the door on Tatum

After the Sixers' 127-121 win over the Bulls, a reporter asked Brown whether he had spoken to Tatum since the split. His answer was a single word: “Nope.” Asked if he planned to approach Tatum before tip-off, he was just as firm. “Nothing to talk about. He's on his side; I'm on my side. We're both trying to win. So it's nothing to talk about,” Brown said.

Tatum had said there was no beef between them, and Brown answered with a line that spread quickly. “There's no beef, but it might be a little lamb chops and some gravy. He should stay ready at all times.” Asked about the people in Boston he is close to, Brown said he loves the city but is focused on what is in front of him.

On the court, Brown is averaging 22.3 points for his new team and scored 29 against Chicago. Scheduling and rest kept the two apart in preseason, so Tuesday is their first real head-to-head. Brown is expected to take a big defensive assignment on Tatum. He knows his old teammate's habits well, though that does not guarantee he can stop him.

Tatum's answer: “It's the Celtics versus Sixers”

Tatum took a calmer line after Boston's 117-97 win over the Bucks. “It's another game on the schedule, and it's the Celtics versus Sixers,” he said, adding that in the words of Brad Stevens, “they all count as one.” He was off that night, shooting 6 for 19 for 21 points, six assists and four rebounds.

Asked whether he would speak to Brown, Tatum stayed noncommittal. “I'm not really, like, able to tell the future,” he said. “Go out there and do my job.” He also praised Philadelphia as “a really good team” with an “incredible group” and a great coaching staff. “It's going to be fun,” he said, “but it's nothing more than Celtics versus the Sixers.”

The stakes go beyond the history. The Sixers lead the East and Boston sits half a game behind, so the result matters in the standings. Fans can expect some jawing, but whatever is left unsaid will have to compete with 48 minutes of basketball.