How does a brand regain trust when a single, unpopular decision drives once loyal fans to threaten defection? That’s the test for the Boston Celtics after its trade of All-Star Jaylen Brown to the rival Philadelphia 76ers set off a media firestorm and made little kids cry.
With such a uniformly negative reaction you may never get fans to accept it as a brilliant basketball move. But to retain trust in the brand – and your leadership – you better communicate with precision and sincerity. Team president Brad Stevens did that. Not with polish but with equal doses of vulnerability, empathy, and a clear-eyed rationale.
He was visibly emotional as he talked about his relationship with the player. “Listen, I’ve lost sleep over the fan part of this. I get it. There’s a bunch of No. 7 jerseys around. I’m pretty sure I bought a couple. So, I get it.” And, unlike majority owner Bill Chisholm who sat next to him, Stevens admitted it was about the money – sort of. He explained that paying Brown and Jayson Tatum at the top of the market is not sustainable in today’s NBA, and a move needed to be made.
“I might be wrong,” he said. “I’m not going to stand up here and be defensive about that. But the path (to winning a title) looked a little bit more challenging with 70 percent of our cap, and such a high percentage of our usage tied into two players.”
Whether it’s a basketball team or your favorite apparel brand, it’s hard to stay angry at someone who’s already told you they understand what they took from you. You can argue with a decision, but when the brand’s leading voice shows you that deep thought and debate went into the decision, and they have a track record to lean on, they’ve earned the benefit of the doubt. Or at least some rope.
While Stevens sounded like a person pained by a decision he had to make, Chisholm sounded like an owner managing risk. One let people see the cost of the decision, and the other tried to manage the perception of it. Stevens’ humanity made the hard logic easier to accept. Chisholm’s caution about being seen as the cost-focused private equity guy ended up making him look calculated.
Beyond sports, the press conference offered guidance to those forced to explain to an unhappy audience why their organization took a certain path:
It’s not a fight. Reporters’ questions can be biting, and several questions directed to Stevens were repeated in a tone meant to draw blood. Stevens never bit back. No Belichickian glare or Musk dismissiveness, no daring the room to push further. Just even-keeled, Midwestern-polite patience. That composure translates: if you don’t get rattled by the tone, people trust the substance.
Vulnerability isn’t weakness. Stevens apologized directly when asked about Brown feeling blindsided by the trade: “If he feels that way, then I’m sorry about that. I am, genuinely, because he’s a meaningful person in all of our lives and certainly mine.” He didn’t relitigate the point. He owned the feeling first, then briefly noted the process had been “well-communicated,” before closing the loop: “But I’m sorry that he feels that way.”
Don’t try to convince people you’re right. Show them you want what they want. Your audience doesn’t need to share your conclusion; they need to know you’re chasing the same outcome they care about. Asked point-blank if the trade actually makes the Celtics better, Stevens didn’t dodge: “We’ll find out. What we ultimately decided could be right or wrong. It’s obviously unpopular, and most people think it will be wrong.” He wasn’t asking fans to blindly trust his judgment, knowing the scoreboard will be what matters.
One voice beats two. As other pro sports owners and corporate CEOs have learned, if Chisholm skipped the press conference he’d be criticized for hiding. But he and Stevens could have better aligned on messaging beforehand or let Stevens carry the room alone. Instead, their answers occasionally contradicted each other and that gap became its own story. In a crisis, one clear voice beats two saying almost but not quite the same thing.
How you show up in the room when people question your judgment and your motives determines whether they give you the benefit of the doubt, or just write you off. The jury is still out on whether Stevens nailed the trade but he appeared to get the communications part right.