How Paul Pierce Felt About Celtics Giving Supermax To Jaylen Brown

What the Boston Celtics will pay star Jaylen Brown over the course of his supermax contract dwarfs what franchise great Paul Pierce made in his entire career.

Brown inked a mega five-year, $304 million extension with the Celtics last week while Pierce earned $195 million over 20 seasons, including 15 with Boston, playing in the NBA, according to Spotrac.

But there’s no envy from Pierce, who has staunchly supported the Celtics in retirement. He’s glad the Celtics and Brown eventually came together on the largest financial deal in NBA history as he sees the All-NBA forward being worth the investment due to his impact on and off the court.

“Shoot, I’m happy for him,” Pierce told Heavy Sports’ Steve Bulpett. “You know what, Jaylen is a smart guy and his value to the city goes beyond basketball. You can tell from what he’s said. I think the Celtics looked at all of that.

“When you invest that much in somebody, it usually is something that can go beyond basketball — especially when you’re talking about the richest deal in NBA history. His influence, who he is as a person, you take that all into account. So you have to feel good giving it to somebody, and I know they feel good because of his influence, not only on the court, but off the court.”

The massive extension will keep Brown with the Celtics through the 2028-29 season. He spent much of his press conference announcing the signing and discussing the social justice reforms he would like to spearhead during his extended time in Boston.

And Pierce gladly applauded the efforts Brown continuously makes in the community.

“He’s been there longer than everybody now, and now he’s doing another long-term deal that’s going to take him into 13 years there,” Pierce told Bulpett. “He has his brand (7uice) out there, and he’s feeling comfortable to be more a part of the city and the community.”

Brown has a difficult task in front of him. With the spotlight even bigger, it will be on him and Jayson Tatum to lift the Celtics to an NBA title, something the team has fallen just short of the last two seasons.

But while trying to do that, Brown also wants to raise up the city of Boston, a feat that Pierce believes could end up defining his Celtics career more than what he accomplishes on the floor.

“That’s on the court and off the court, and that’s what you want to see from a player, a person,” Pierce said. “Basketball’s his job, but he’s more than a basketball player. People are really going to appreciate that even more as time goes on.”