Antoine Walker, Paul Pierce 2.0

Brad Stevens held his end of the year synopsis on Thursday. As Stevens lamented, he would have rather the event be a pre-Game 1 of the NBA Finals press conference, but instead it was a post-mortem.

Stevens offered little into what changes may come for next season. He did say (or nodded, slightly approvingly) that head coach Joe Mazzulla would return next season. Take that for what it is. It doesn’t mean Stevens can’t or won’t go back on his word (or nod), but for now it looks like first-year head coach Joe Mazzulla will be second-year head coach next season.

Stevens made note that the Celtics were 48 minutes away from making the Finals. Had the Celtics been swept by the Heat after falling behind three games to none, Stevens wouldn’t have been able to say that. So, maybe, just maybe, the Celtics forcing a Game 7 against Miami may have saved Mazzulla’s job.

Stevens mentioned that Mazzulla “did a really good job” after being thrust into the head coaching position five days prior to the regular season. Among other things, Stevens liked the fact that Mazzulla “is accountable.” He sure was that. He took responsibility in the playoffs for not having his team ready to play in several games. Is that a good thing?

At the same time, Mazzulla was very defensive in press conferences regarding the use of his timeouts and his reliance on the three-point shot. After Game 2 of the Philadelphia series, Mazzulla commented to the press as he got up to leave the podium, “What? No one wants to ask about all the adjustments we made from Game 1 to Game 2?” So I would back off a little bit on the praise of his accountability.

Stevens made a head-scratching compliment about Mazzulla’s lack of experience by saying that his coaching experience can be measured in “dog years” because of all his playoff experience and everything he has been through. There seems little doubt that Mazzulla is Stevens’ guy. Stevens was fishing for compliments despite the fact that these Celtics got off to a historic start to the season and were the most talented team in the playoffs.

With the coaching question seemingly answered, the attention turns to the next big question. Can these Celtics win a championship with both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown playing alongside each other? There is no doubt that these two players, individually, are among the top 10-12 players in the NBA. But can they play together and win?

It reminds me of the early 2000’s when the Celtics were one of the more exciting teams in the NBA with Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce chucking up threes at a time when three-pointers were still a bit of a rarity. Their shoot outs with Chuck Person and Reggie Miller of the Indiana Pacers were legendary.

The last two seasons Pierce and Walker played together resulted in their team getting to the Eastern Conference Finals. For the first time in a decade, Celtics’ fans were hyped. The future looked bright. Then Danny Ainge became GM. One of Ainge’s first things he did was trade Antoine Walker to Dallas for Raef Lafrentz, Jiri Welsch, Chris Mills, and a first-round pick.

Celtics’ fans and the media were in an uproar. They were confused how Ainge could split up the two talented, young superstars when they were so close to making the Finals two years in a row. But Ainge understood that the chemistry wasn’t right. Walker and Pierce were too similar of players. They were redundant, as it were.

The similarities don’t end there. Pierce was the 10th overall pick in 1998. Antoine Walker went even higher at number six in 1996. It seems hard to believe now, in hindsight, but Walker was considered the more dynamic of the two players then. He was also more of a veteran.

But Ainge saw something in Pierce that he didn’t see in Walker. He saw leadership skills. He saw heart. He saw a team player. Walker was all about the shoulder shimmy and look at me.

Both Tatum and Brown were drafted third overall, even higher than Walker and Pierce. Tatum has gotten far more attention. He has his own shoe line. He is in commercials. Networks put his photo up there when they are promoting upcoming Celtics’ games.

Yet Jaylen Brown may be the one the Celtics should build around. Yes, he was very bad in the Miami series, but Kobe Bryant had a couple of horrific playoff series early in his career. Magic Johnson’s first matchup against Larry Bird in a Finals was a disaster. Michael Jordan took years to get past the Detroit Pistons’ teams of the late 1980s.

Brown just goes about his business. He doesn’t cry to the refs every time he misses a shot. He dives after loose balls. He has that “eye of the tiger” look in his eyes in big games. He plays intense defense. He doesn't seek the limelight. He calls out his teammates, and the fans, if and when they become complacent. He can finish at the hoop. He can shoot from outside. He can put a team on his shoulders. He is a competitor.

Tatum, on the other hand, is the type to promote adulation for himself. Remember when he scored a record-breaking 51 points in Game 7 against the 76ers (how can anyone forget?), and him standing at midcourt raising his arms and making the “come hither” motion with his hands wanting the crowd to shower him with more and more applause. Could you picture Jaylen Brown ever doing this?

And aren’t we all sick of Tatum whining to the referees every time he drives to the basket and misses? Or he will turn to the bench and ask for a challenge every time he is called for a foul? It is tiresome.

And has anyone seen any leadership ability out of Tatum? I am not talking about individual stats. I am talking about stepping up during timeouts and getting in teammates’ faces. I am talking about giving players high fives after they make shots. I am talking about taking to the podium after games and representing his teammates.

Stevens was asked about Brown and if he is a fit in Boston. Nobody asked Stevens the same about Tatum. It seems like Tatum gets a free pass here in Boston. Brown has always been in his shadow, just like Pierce was always in Antoine Walker’s shadow. It is time for Tatum to go, not Brown. Hopefully Stevens can get a bigger haul than LaFrentz and Welsch in return.

It is time for this team to be Jaylen Brown’s.