Celtics Rumors: Team USA Had These Jaylen Brown Concerns For Olympics

Grant Hill claimed it was purely a basketball decision to leave Jaylen Brown off the Team USA roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

That might not have been media speak from the club’s executive director.

In a lengthy column that covered the Boston Celtics’ offseason following their NBA Finals triumph, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne revealed concerns Team USA had about Brown’s potential fit on the Olympic stage.

“Brown hadn’t exactly been a star for Team USA in 2019, when he played in the World Cup under Gregg Popovich, averaging just 7.9 points and 4.1 rebounds as the team finished a disappointing seventh,” Shelburne wrote. “And there were some questions then about his ball movement and decision making, sources said, and questions during the summer among Team USA leaders about whether he’d be willing to play the defensive-minded role that (Derrick) White was being tasked with.”

Brown clearly thought his omission from the roster was due to external factors, such as his icy relationship with Nike. And it was fair for the 27-year-old to take that stance, as he proved himself and then some with a third All-Star selection, Eastern Conference finals MVP, Finals MVP and NBA championship in the span of five months.

Team USA ended up winning a gold medal without Brown, so Hill and company surely aren’t dwelling on their decision to not roster the Celtics star. Brown, meanwhile, can use the omission as motivation when Boston tries to defend its title this season.