Despite winning the 2024 Finals MVP, Jaylen Brown has had an unfortunate time in the hoops community. Team USA snubbed the Boston Celtics forward and instead picked Jayson Tatum and Derrick White. While many speculated on the reasons behind the decision, including Brown himself, Grant Hill, managing director of Team USA, provided an official update. Nevertheless, it wasn’t received well, and the Celts star hit back at Hill. However, NFL legend Shannon Sharpe, soaking it all in, turned the attention to Brown once again with a brutal take.

Addressing Derrick White’s replacement for Kawhi Leonard, Grant Hill referred to it as a pure “basketball decision”. Moreover, he took a dig at Brown for his comments on Nike, accusing the brand of involvement in his snub. Hill added, “I always love a good conspiracy theory, but it was really truly a basketball decision and these are tough decisions,” in The Dan Patrick Show. 

Brown also didn’t hold back, as he took to his X handle, and wrote, “Calling me a conspiracy theorist is disappointing. I’ve been a VP since I was 21 years old. I have a great understanding,” keeping the controversy flaming. However, this time NFL legend Shannon Sharpe chipped in with an intervention and also defended his colleague, Stephen A. Smith. Earlier, Jaylen Brown had hit back at A.Smith for questioning his marketability, saying “State your source”. And amid his Olympic snub, Smith again recalled his view.

In the latest episode of Night Cap addressed Brown’s response to Grant Hill. He said, “Grant Hill says, ‘I’m trying to find the right balance’ and it’s not easy to find the right balance. Did you hear what they said? They said the only three that did not have the trial was Steph Curry, LeBron James, and Kevin Durant. You’re talking about three of the most popular players. LeBron is the most popular player, Steph is number two, KD is somewhere around in the top 5. KD, this is your fourth Olympics. LeBron, this is your fourth Olympics. Steph, you’ve never been. Hey bro, we love to have you, everybody else is. I mean, Jaylen, bro, come on! You get mad when Stephen A said that someone called and said he’s not marketable ‘State your Source’. Well, that’s the source. You got left at home and you’re the Finals MVP. You’re the Eastern Conference MVP.“

Unc dropped wisdom for Jaylen Brown

Following his brutal take on Brown siding with Stephen A. Smith, Sharpe shared a piece of advice. But, he made one thing very clear, as he said, “Everything is not a conspiracy,” which directly meant Sharpe wasn’t buying Brown’s Nike story.

Sharpe said, “I think Jaylen Brown is phenomenal. I think what he does to his community. But those are two separate things… You can be a good player and not be popular. You could be popular and not a good player.” The NFL legend sounded like he had a strong point, defending his colleague. And Jayson Tatum’s lack of game time also added value to his argument.

There was a lot of uproar in the NBA world for picking Jayson Tatum over JB in the Team USA roster. Ironically, the Celtics star didn’t get game time in the inaugural game against Serbia due to the overpowered roster of the team. This instance also proved that there isn’t any surety of Brown getting game time even if he had been selected for the Olympics.

Nevertheless, Steve Kerr promised that JT will be given game time for the next challenge against South Sudan. Do you think Jayson Tatum will make a mark in the next game? Let us know in the comments.

Before you go, do not forget to check out Essentially Sports’ latest exclusive, featuring bg12 x Silas Demary Jr. Keep checking this space for more such updates.