Jaylen Brown is planning to pay it forward.
The 26-year-old Celtics star recently shared during a press conference says he wants to use it to combat the “unsettling” wealth disparity in Boston.
“I want to launch a project to bring Black Wall Street to Boston and help bridge the wealth gap,” the shooting guard and small forward said following the huge news of his recent deal.
As previously reported by ESSENCE, Brown recently signed a blockbuster $304 million contract extension, making him not only highest paid player in the NBA. According to a CBS News report, it includes a trade kicker, but the final year will not include a player option.
His desire to help underserved communities in Boston is unsurprising as the overall poverty rate for the city sits at 20.5%. This means that about 128,618 persons were counted as living in poverty status.
“Massachusetts, and the Boston area in particular, is one of the highest costs of living in the country, and it’s become highly problematic for people of average or below average income to afford to live,” Greg Sullivan, research director for the Pioneer Institute based in Boston told the Boston Herald in September 2021.
Brown’s recent sentiment isn’t new, as he’s touted the importance of giving back for years. In 2019, Brown he launched The 7uice Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to raise awareness around the effects of poverty on underserevd communities, particularly the youth.
“I work a lot with disadvantaged communities around education, giving kids opportunity that they normally wouldn’t have, building a bridge to higher education,” Brown said in a video about the organization’s mission. “Juice is for me, a synonym for energy, and that’s what it’s all about.”