Celtics Teammate Defends Jaylen Brown’s Team USA Comments

Jaylen Brown’s omission from the United States Olympic roster had NBA fans wondering if there would be a rift in the Boston Celtics locker room, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

The 2024 NBA Finals MVP was not chosen to replace Kawhi Leonard, and Brown publicly called out Nike under the belief it played a role in his snub. The All-NBA star promised further details in the future, but fans felt the 27-year-old slighted his teammate Derrick White, who was chosen to replace Leonard.

Despite Brown being labeled as “selfish” for his public comments toward Grant Hill and Team USA, one Celtics teammate had no problem with the All-Star being outspoken.

“Let him speak. I don’t think Derrick felt any type of way at all,” Payton Pritchard told Evan Turner on the “Point Forward” podcast. “We’re all brothers at the end of the day. Not even having the consideration of putting him on was confusing to me. Jaylen is a top-level player. He fits everything that they need. He can defend. He can play any role, and I think he can accept that. I think people have this perception of him that he’s this difficult teammate, difficult dude, which is like not the case at all. I love Jaylen to death. I got so much respect for him and the type of person he is. I feel like sometimes the media and the outsiders don’t know that about him.”

Hill said this week Brown would be in consideration for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles and continued to defend his point that White was a better fit for this year’s team than Brown.

The All-Star guard enjoyed his summer celebrating the Celtics’ championship victory as Team USA continues on its path toward a gold medal at the Paris Olympics.