Celtics star Jaylen Brown was passed over to replace injured Kawhi Leonard on Team USA in favor of his Boston teammate Derrick White, sparking a self-congratulatory response from ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.
“Do y’all believe me now?” Smith asked on X.
Smith and Brown have been at odds since May when Smith claimed a league source told him that Brown’s “I am better than you” attitude has negatively affected his marketability. Brown has repeatedly challenged Smith to reveal his source, even wearing a “state your source” t-shirt during the Celtics’ recent NBA championship celebration in Boston.
Smith was quick to celebrate Brown’s Olympic snub, presenting it as validation of his earlier comments about Brown’s marketability issues.
“Yo [Brown], do I need to reveal my sources now?” Smith asked on X. “Is it not obvious now?”
Smith underscored the disparity between Brown’s five-year, $289 million contract and his failure to make the Team USA roster.
“How in the hell is a $300M man — now a champion and an NBA Finals MVP — who’s clearly a top-two player on the @celtics and a Top-15 player in the world, NOT chosen for Team USA?” Smith continued. “Come on y’all!!!”
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However, Brown suggested there was another reason for his exclusion from Team USA: Nike. The Olympic team’s official apparel partner has endorsement deals with nine of the twelve players on the roster. Not only does Brown lack a contract with Nike, but he has also been critical of the brand in the past.
Following Team USA’s decision to replace Leonard with White, Brown took to X to express his frustration, ” @nike this what we doing?”
In response, USA Basketball managing director Grant Hill dismissed Brown’s insinuation and joked about his own history as a Fila spokesman.
“Well, for a good portion of my career, I wore Fila,” Hill laughed. “We’re proud of our partners, obviously at USA Basketball, but this is about putting together a team.”
Hill explained the decision to select White over Brown by highlighting White’s fit with the current team.
“I don’t feel like his role changes much with our team from what he does with the Celtics,” Hill said. “He plays alongside two incredibly great young players, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. And this setting is hard when you come in and you’re the center of your universe and now you have to establish a role and it might be different than what you have to do with your team. To have someone who can come in and play off of guys, be complementary to some others, but then also stand out … we’re excited.”
As the debate over Brown’s exclusion continues, it raises questions about the factors influencing Team USA’s roster decisions and the broader implications for player endorsements and marketability in professional sports.
