Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Grant Hill, managing director of the U.S. men’s national team, said the selection of Boston Celtics guard Derrick White was made entirely for basketball-related reasons after the U.S. was forced to replace Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard.
“You have to build a team and one of the hardest things is leaving out guys that you’re a fan of and look forward to watching all season and all playoff time,” Hill told reporters on Wednesday.
“Guys who were Finals MVPs, guys who were in the program, guys who won gold medals. These are guys that I respect and admire and enjoy watching. But my responsibility is to bring the team together and build a team that complements each other.”
Celtics star Jaylen Brown did not seem to hide his disappointment that his Celtics teammates were not selected, suggesting that Nike may have influenced the United States Basketball Association’s decision.
Jaylen Brown @FCWPO
@nike Is this what we’re doing?
Hill denied that was the case.
Ben Golliver @Ben Golliver
USA Basketball’s Grant Hill responded to Jaylen Brown’s post, which seemed to suggest Nike was to blame for him missing out on the Olympics: “I’ve worn Fila for the majority of my career. It was meant as a joke. Of course, we’re proud of our partners. … This is about bringing the team together.”pic.twitter.com/Oh7LvSaUCW
Nike has long supplied apparel to the U.S. national basketball team, and Brown has been an outspoken critic of the company in recent years.
In 2022, he was a three-time All-Star. I have writtenWhen the company distanced itself from Kyrie Irving after he promoted an anti-Semitic film on Twitter, critics asked, “Since when does Nike care about ethics?” Irving has maintained a cold war with Nike by either hiding Nike’s trademark “swoosh” or removing it entirely from his sneakers.
Nick DePaula @Nick DePaula
Jaylen Brown adds a message to Nike with his custom Kobe 5 👀👀 pic.twitter.com/u9oFl5UEXt
Kicks Finder @Kicks Finder
Jaylen Brown shows off the Swoosh-less Nike Kobe 6 “Reverse Grinch” that he wore today at the NBA Christmas game 🎄🏀 pic.twitter.com/3uIjxv2b5p
Brown certainly deserved to be selected to the U.S. national team. He was a key cog in the Celtics’ championship run and was named MVP of both the Eastern Conference Finals and the NBA Finals.
Viewed in a vacuum, Brown is certainly a better individual player than White.
The public outrage over the former’s absence ignores what the latter brings to the team. The 6-foot-4 guard is a good defender and has been a nominee for the All-Defensive Second Team the past two years. He’s also better suited to an off-ball role, which U.S. coach Steve Kerr needs with the amount of talent at his disposal.
Keith Smith @Keith SmithNBA
I think adding Derrick White to Team USA is for two main reasons:
– The team needs another defensive-minded guard. Team USA has suffered in the past when they were unable to protect opposing guards.
– White doesn’t complain about not playing much, which is big for team chemistry.
Noah Dalzell 🏀 @Noah Dalzell NBA
I feel like people who complain about Derrick White being a potential replacement for Team USA are forgetting how team basketball works.
Derrick White is one of the best utility players in the world, and you don’t want a team full of stars who all need the ball in their hands.
It’s not 1992 anymore. The rest of the world is closing the gap on the U.S., and it may not be as simple as the U.S. team getting the ball rolling and winning on pure talent alone.
Hill, Kerr and the rest of the selection committee must assemble the best team they believe in, but that’s not the same as picking the best player.
Brown’s disappointment is understandable. He’s still waiting for his first Summer Olympic appearance, and this may have been his best chance. He’ll be 31 by the time Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics.
Still, the talent-rich U.S. roster means tough decisions must be made at major tournaments, and there were good reasons to leave Brown out rather than delve into unfounded theories.
