Jaylen Brown being snubbed by Team USA for the 2024 Olympics has rubbed many people the wrong way, especially after Kawhi Leonard dropped out and was replaced by Brown’s teammate Derrick White. Brown criticized Nike for leading the decision, which led four-year NBA veteran Rashad McCants to explain why Nike wouldn’t want Brown on Team USA and how shoe politics has dominated this situation.
“Jaylen Brown sided with Kyrie Irving. He spoke out against Nike dropping Kyrie. Nike dropped Kyrie after the post, Jaylen Brown didn’t like that, I think he was the President of the Players’ Association at the time. He was obligated to speak out about what Nike did, and why they did it, he didn’t like it. He was wearing Kobes at the time, so he started covering up his Kobes.”
“Then he gets his $305 million and gets on this mic and says I’m bringing Black Wall Street. Then in the middle of the best season they’ve had with this band together, they come out with this whole marketing – ‘He ain’t marketable. He ain’t this. He ain’t that.’ – Right before the playoffs really started to take off. Created the narrative.”
“Then he goes out and wins the MVP for the Eastern Conference, then he wins the actual MVP. Then they actually win the championship. And y’all still don’t got no love for me?… If you ain’t Adidas or Nike, it’s up in the air, and he ain’t represented by either. He’s in the middle, and they don’t like that.”
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Brown averaged 23.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists for a dominant Celtics regular season before averaging 23.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in the Playoffs, being named Eastern Conference and Finals MVP. Despite that, three of his Celtics teammates are currently representing Team USA at the Paris Olympics, with Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday, and Derrick White all part of the team.
We know the Celtics were led through collective strength rather than a standalone superstar, but Brown being the one to be left off Team USA after his contributions to the Celtics as a two-way wing last season hasn’t sat well with anyone.
Nike Representation Is Heavy In Team USA
Team USA has major Nike representation amongst its ranks, with nine out of 12 players wearing Nike shoes at the Olympics. The only non-Nike athletes on the squad are undeniable selections such as Stephen Curry (Under Armour), Joel Embiid (Skechers), and Anthony Edwards (Adidas). The list would’ve had Kawhi Leonard (New Balance) on it as well, but Leonard dropped out and was replaced by Nike-wearing Derrick White.
Jaylen Brown is a sneaker free agent. He came close to signing with Nike as someone who regularly wore Kobe’s during games but distanced himself from the brand after they dropped Kyrie Irving in 2021. If there’s any sneaker company Brown would be willing to join, it’s probably Chinese shoemaker Anta, where Kyrie serves as the Chief Creative Officer.
There are lineup reasons that can be used to justify the decision not to select Brown for Team USA, as Holiday and White are multi-positional and low maintenance, content with just being major defensive presences who can shoot threes. Whether Brown would be okay with accepting a similar role is something we’ll never know, as he hasn’t gotten the chance to do so.
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