Who knew Kawhi Leonard’s peaceful vacation in Costa Rica would be followed by a storm? He is out of Team USA due to the concerns surrounding his injuries. It was officially announced that Derrick White was chosen to fill the vacant spot. Soon, Boston Celtics veteran Jaylen Brown caused a stir with his cryptic comment involving Nike indirectly calling out Team USA for his snub. Now, former ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins shared that he believes there might be another reason behind Brown not being selected, despite him being the best player to replace Leonard.

Perkins spoke about the contentious topic of Brown’s snub where he detailed that the Celtics player is quite upset with the whole matter hinting at the tweet. He said on Road Trippin’, “I would believe you if Kawhi Leonard and Jaylen Brown were basically the same player like so they’re both two-way players so if you lose Kawhi Leonard, why not replace him with Jaylen Brown? That makes zero sense to me. That makes zero sense. You could give the politically correct answer all you want, I’m giving you the real. It’s something else that’s there for him to continue to keep getting disrespected and skipped over.”

Now, why has Brown’s tweet caused chaos on social media? Earlier, the MVP took to social media and wrote, “@nike this what we doing?” Given Brown’s history with Nike, many were quick to point out how it might be an indirect aim at the brand which has been a longtime apparel sponsor for Team USA for the Olympics and a current one too. Brown isn’t part of the brand like the rest of the players. But there’s another story involving Kyrie Irving as highlighted by fans.

Brown was one of the few who supported Irving when he was dismissed from the brand. In 2022, Irving who was initially part of the brand was dismissed because of his post promoting an anti-Semitic film. Brown retweeted a post featuring Nike Founder Phil Knight’s comment on the matter and wrote, “Since when did Nike care about ethics?”

Moving on, let’s see what the others have to say about about Jaylen Brown’s snub.

What does Team USA managing director Grant Hill think about Jaylen Brown’s snub?

Hill has been candid about fans’ and experts’ doubts regarding why Brown wasn’t selected. He explained that the decision was based on the players’ roles and contributions and how well they complement each other on the team.

Brown’s MVP titles in Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals do make him the best choice. But Hill explained, “You have to build a team. And one of the hardest things is leaving people off the roster that I’m a fan of, that I look forward to watching throughout the season, throughout the playoffs.”

One of the members of the podcast Road Trippin’, Richard Jefferson also explained his views on how the players are selected for Team USA. He expanded on how 9-star players and three to four role players make up the team to explain how White fits the role. However, some still appeared unimpressed.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.