Stephen A. Smith Is Weirdly Ecstatic Over Jaylen Brown Not Making The U.S. Olympic Roster

Stephen A. Smith is legitimately, and very weirdly, beside himself that Jaylen Brown wasn't called to replace Kawhi Leonard on the Team USA Olympic roster for the upcoming Games in Paris.

After Leonard announced that he was officially withdrawing from the American squad on Wednesday, many believed that Brown would be in the running to slide into the empty slot, and understandably so. After all, Brown is fresh off of winning NBA Finals MVP, a three-time All-Star, and among the highest-paid players in the league.

Instead, USA Basketball turned to Brown's Boston Celtics teammate, Derrick White, and he'll be joining another Celtic with Jayson Tatum already on the roster. 

Brown, an Adidas athlete, seems to think that Nike is making a concerted effort to keep him off of Team USA and quickly called out the swoosh brand after not making the roster.

Back in November 2022, Brown called out Nike for claiming to care about ethics amid the whole Kyrie Irving - antisemitism disaster. Irving is also not on Team USA for the upcoming Olympics while Steph Curry, who is an Under Armour athlete, is the notable non-Nike athlete headed to Paris.

Now, what does this have to do with Stephen A. and his opinion of Brown? The dots do connect, we promise. Just like Brown has a history with Nike, Smith has a history with Brown.

READ: ESPN's Failed Investments Into Woke Sportscasters Leaves The Network No Choice But To Pay Stephen A.

During the Celtics' run to a title back in May, Smith called out Brown on ‘First Take’ claiming that he wasn’t as marketable as he should be. He has an "I am better than you attitude." Brown took note and told Smith to state his source and even wore a ‘State Your Source’ shirt during Boston's championship parade.

Fast-forward to present day, shortly after White was named to the Team USA roster instead of Brown, Smith jumped on X to relish in the Celtics' star not having his name called.

Smith, is of course, in the entertainment business and getting into an online beef with one of the biggest stars in the NBA is good for business.  But, he is also just a 56-year-old man calling out one of the best athletes on the planet, which is never not weird.

As for Brown not making Team USA's roster, it isn't as shocking as Smith or others may want it to be. The roster is already incredibly top-heavy with the likes of LeBron James, Anthony Edwards, Kevin Durant, and Steph Curry. White will be an option off of the bench, Brown nor his NBA salary doesn't exactly fit the mold of seeing a handful of minutes off of the bench.