Ahead of Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics' first regular-season matchup against Jaylen Brown and the Philadelphia 76ers, their former head coach Ime Udoka chimed in on the dynamic of their relationship. Brown reportedly demanded to be treated equally as Tatum before he was abruptly traded to the Celtics' division rival.

Former teammate Marcus Smart discussed Tatum and Brown's Celtics relationship, blaming the media for eventually driving a wedge between the two All-Stars. Udoka, who guided Smart, Brown, Tatum, and the Celtics to the NBA Finals in 2022, delivered his take, per The Athletic's Jay King.

“Me being there, being part of it, it’s always somewhat been the narrative,” Udoka said. “But they had a lot of success together, and they should be able to talk that out and not worry about what everybody else is thinking, the opinions and the narratives.”

Ime Udoka watched Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown win a championship with the Celtics in 2024. He became the head coach of the Houston Rockets in 2023. Smart, who signed with the Rockets over the summer, reuniting him with his former head coach from Boston, offered his perspective on Tatum and Brown's relationship.

“Going to war with those guys, I know the work that they put in, both of them,” Smart said. “For them to end how it is, I blame a lot of it on the media. Because when I was there, we were good, we were rocking. When I left, they were still good and rocking. I think they just allowed certain stuff in the media to come in between them, to create that gap.”

Smart argued that outside narratives caused a riff between the two Celtics stars.

“Everybody put assumptions on the guys. Saying they’re this, saying they’re that, creating a wedge, creating a villain, creating a hero. That [factors into it] a lot.”

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He said the situation grew into something it never should have and that it affected their relationship.

“Unfortunately, with that situation, it got turned into something that it should have never got turned into. And I think it affected that relationship because of it.”

Brown and the 76ers will host Tatum and the Celtics on Tuesday.