On July 26, 2023, Jaylen Brown signed a supermax contract extension with the Celtics for $304 million in a fully guaranteed five-year deal that’ll be on the books in 2024-25.
This was one of the coolest contract signings in the history of the NBA (in my opinion). Brown wanted to have it at the MIT Media Lab with his 7uice Foundation and the youth members in the Bridge Program he created, along with being introduced by Olympian and civil rights leader John Carols.
There was a brief pause in the negotiations while Brown traveled to Spain for an event with the NBA Players Association but there was never any doubt this deal wasn’t going to get done.
Brown was asked what he plans on doing with such a large amount of money and he didn’t hesitate to share his thoughts.
“I want to launch a project to bring Black Wall Street here in Boston. I want to attack the wealth disparity here. I think there’s analytics that supports that stimulating the wealth gap could actually be something that could be better meant for the entire economy.”
The original Black Wall Street originated in Tulsa, Oklahoma during the early 20th century and was thriving with over 100 businesses including grocery stores, restaurants, billiards halls, and hotels that were all Black-owned establishments.
In 1921, Black Wall Street took a hit in what is now referred to as the Tulsa Race Massacre, when a white mob rolled through Black Wall Street where it stretched throughout the Greenwood neighborhood and destroyed the entire business district for the Black community.
When Michelle Wu was running for Mayor, she shared a study from The Color of Wealth in Boston that showed the median net worth of a white family was $247,500, while the median net worth of a Black family was just $8 (that is not a typo).
Brown wants to create a Black Wall Street for the city of Boston that has one of the largest wealth disparities in the country. He wants to create more economic opportunities for the Black community in Boston and its surrounding areas.
“With the biggest financial deal in NBA history, it makes sense to talk about, one, your investment in [the] community, but two also, the wealth disparity here that nobody wants to talk about. It’s top five in the U.S. It’s something that we can all improve on. It’s unsettling.”
Before signing his new contract, Brown held an event at the Fenelon Street playground in Dorchester where he redesigned and created a brand new basketball court. This is what he said at the event:
“We have to close the wealth gap here in Boston as well. We have to create new jobs, new opportunities, new resources, it can all make an impact for people of color but can also boost the economy.”
Brown is going to use his supermax contract to help change the wealth disparity and economy in Boston, which will eventually change the living situation for many people in the city.
He’s going to change the world and this is just the start. Brad Stevens has always said:
“Jaylen’s greatest impact, as good as he is in basketball, won’t be in basketball. He’s a special guy, a special leader. He’s smart but he has courage. He’s got a lot of great stuff to him.”
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