Paris Olympics: Jalen Brunson Quotes Isiah Thomas after Infamous ‘Dream Team’ Snub to Make His Case

Team USA has packed the strongest team possible for the Paris Olympics. Superstars like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry will be marking their attendance after the national side’s meltdown at the 2023 FIBA WC. It’s evident the management went on a mission to assemble a lethal roster. Unfortunately, NY Knicks‘ star guard Jalen Brunson couldn’t make the cut and while responding to the snub, he made an infamous callback from 1992.

Brunson, in the latest interview with the Bleacher Report, took piping-hot questions and effortlessly responded to them all. As he was put on the spot after being asked, “Do you feel you should’ve been on the roster?”, his response, without flinching a muscle, was “What Isaiah Thomas said… ‘I felt like I made the criteria,'” leaving the host in splits.

The infamous ‘criteria’ statement from Detroit Pistons legend was from the iconic mini-series, The Last Dance. In one of the episodes, Thomas would respond to the question about not being selected for the ‘Dream Team’ in 1992, which featured NBA superstars for the first time in the Olympics. He said, “I don’t know what went into that process. I met the criteria to be selected, but I wasn’t.” This statement was an instant hit and went viral in the meme world. And Jalen Brunson couldn’t have recalled it for any other situation!

Nevertheless, leaving the humor aside, Brunson revealed his wish to make it to the cut. He added, “I feel like I should have been one. I would have loved to play.” However, the team has been already selected and JB can head into the off-season with the pride of taking the Big Apple side to the Conference semis.

Why was Jalen Brunson not selected for the Olympics roster?

There isn’t any definite answer or an official statement for the decision. But Jalen Brunson revealed a possible reason. He added, “Obviously, like last year, like losing may have had something to do with it… Losing the World Championships or the World Cup.” During the 2023 FIBA WC, the team, head coached by Steve Kerr, roped in stars like Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Haliburton, and Anthony Edwards for the challenge. The team went on a dominant run, reaching the semifinals, and lost against Germany. And for the Bronze medal game, the team lost against Canada and went home medal-less.

In that tournament, Brunson had an underwhelming run, playing 20 minutes per game, averaging 11 points and 4 assists. However, the star may have compensated it with a magnificent run in the 2023-24 regular season, averaging a career-best 28.7 points. But it wasn’t enough for him to find a spot on the Olympics roster. On the other hand, Haliburton and Ant-Man made it to the final roster despite their participation in the FIBA WC too.

Do you think JB was snubbed for his spot on the roster? Let us know in the comments below.

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