JB and the Olympics

[jambr380]

I agree he could have given a shoutout to White, but let's be honest here, even White is probably confused why he was chosen over Jaylen. He knows Jaylen is better than him. This isn't like a close call with guys like Kyrie or Mitchell getting chosen instead. Because of that, I don't think it'll lead to any dissention between him and White. Just like it didn't between him and Jrue, who Jaylen is also obviously better than.

Personally, I do kind of like that it is turning into a thing. Angry chip on shoulder Jaylen is a way better player. We saw how he came out this past year after he literally fumbled away going to the Finals on the biggest stage in a game 7. That and Tatum getting passed over for both MVP awards and this might be the biggest have something to prove defending Title team we've ever seen.

[Kernewek]

This isn't a good look. He's mad because he believes it's political. He can still preach about Gaza while giving DW props for being selected. He doesn't have to start his own war.


We don't need distractions, and this will be one. I just hope it's not going to lead to bad feelings in the locker room. They have one of the best shots of any recent champ to repeat, he needs to be focused on that.

 

It's an interesting pick and mix, considering he's very clearly open to Black Hebrew Israelite ideology as well.

On the other hand, as Jambr noted if he raised his game this much based on the chip he's very clearly had on his shoulder since 2023, this could be great for us on the court.

It won't be, probably. But it could be.

[Vermont Green]

Do y?all believe me now? Yo
@FCHWPO
, do I need to reveal my sources now? Is it not obvious now? How in the hell is a $300M man ? now a champion and an NBA Finals MVP? who?s clearly a top-two player on the
@celtics
 and a Top-15 player in the world, NOT chosen for Team-USA? B/c his teammate NOT named Tatum is selected before him? Come on y?all!!!

So what is Stephen A saying?  Sounds like he is agreeing with Brown that he should have been selected but wasn't for political or commercial reasons?

[johnnygreen]

Steven A. Smith chimed in:

"Do y?all believe me now? Yo @FCHWPO, do I need to reveal my sources now?? Smith posted to X on Wednesday night. ?Is it not obvious now? How in the hell is a $300 million man ? now a champion and an NBA Finals MVP? who?s clearly a top-two player on the @celtics and a top-15 player in the world, NOT chosen for Team USA? B/c his teammate NOT named Tatum is selected before him? Come on y?all!!!?

I know a lot of people around here don't like him, but I buy this over any basketball related reason. White is a great defender, but not much more than Brown. I feel like Brown won the ECF and Finals MVP because of his defense. Other than Holiday, this is essentially an all star team, so I don't buy the team fit either. I'm glad White made the team, as he deserves the recognition, but something doesn't seem right.

As for Jaylen's tweets, it's not a good look. It feels too much like a slight to White.

[johnnygreen]

https://x.com/fchwpo/status/1811431665878888779?s=46&t=lGU0TGXtwjkuVuoin6WTNw

I?m not afraid of you or your resources

Ugh, this is becoming a whole thing, isn?t it?

It's going to get amplified.  SAS is already after him:

Do y?all believe me now? Yo
@FCHWPO
, do I need to reveal my sources now? Is it not obvious now? How in the hell is a $300M man ? now a champion and an NBA Finals MVP? who?s clearly a top-two player on the
@celtics
 and a Top-15 player in the world, NOT chosen for Team-USA? B/c his teammate NOT named Tatum is selected before him? Come on y?all!!!

Can someone get Jaylen's cell phone and throw it away. Stop tweeting.

[Kernewek]

Do y?all believe me now? Yo
@FCHWPO
, do I need to reveal my sources now? Is it not obvious now? How in the hell is a $300M man ? now a champion and an NBA Finals MVP? who?s clearly a top-two player on the
@celtics
 and a Top-15 player in the world, NOT chosen for Team-USA? B/c his teammate NOT named Tatum is selected before him? Come on y?all!!!

So what is Stephen A saying?  Sounds like he is agreeing with Brown that he should have been selected but wasn't for political or commercial reasons?

I think SAS is saying 'this is the biggest click-generator we're going to see until the Olympics start, and we can run with this storyline for the whole NBA offseason'

[bello_man09]

did Jb forget he and white are on the same team.

[Atzar]

Can't really react to this when the people involved speak in vague allusions that could be taken any of a dozen different ways.  Love JB but that's not new where he's concerned, lol.  And SAS continues to forgo substance in favor of exclamation points. 

I will say that my knee-jerk reaction is to side against Nike in nearly any discussion, so there's that. 

[jambr380]

In the end, the Celtics did not make this decision, Team USA (and perhaps Nike) did. So in that regard, I don't see dissention developing between Jaylen and White. White might be a little sheepish knowing he got a spot that Jaylen probably deserved, but it's not like he went to interview for the position behind his back. Once they reconvene later this summer, I'm sure they will get to work and it'll be business as usual.

As a fan base, we have to understand that Jaylen might not be the most marketable as a personality. Who knows how far down the list Jaylen actually was as a replacement? We love Jaylen's edge, but others might be a little nervous about it. Fair or not, Team USA seeing these tweets is reaffirming their decision to leave Jaylen off.

[kraidstar]

I've said for years Nike has an outsized influence on this sport and that it extends onto the court.

They're a lot like Vought American from "the Boys." Purveyors of fraudulence.

[green_bballers13]

I would have preferred that JB get Kawhi's spot over D. White, but I understand the decision.  Team USA was going for team-building rather than picking the biggest names. 

JB apparently doesn't seem to agree that the decision was a reasonable one.  After his originally cryptic post (🧐🧐🧐) JB seemingly bought into some of the conspiracy theories floating out there, namely that him being left off the team was due to his public criticism of Nike (after they fired Kyrie).  Nike is sponsoring the team, and the conspiracy theory is that they've ensured that both Brown and Kyrie are excluded.  JB leaned into this, posting

@nike this what we doing?

https://twitter.com/FCHWPO/status/1811149549827936563

I guess my question is, why?  Why make his disappointment very public, particularly when his own teammate got the spot?  At the very least, JB is telling the world that Derrick White's spot isn't deserved.  Why not just keep the beef private?  Or, if you're going to go public, do it with a thought out post or a Player's Tribune article or something.  The semi-cryptic one-liners are what I expect from a gamey teenage girl on social media, not a VP in the Player's Association.

JB is better than Kawhi at this stage of their careers. Kawhi just can't stay healthy. He's upset that he got passed over by inferior players. I get it, though I'm not a big social media guy.

I'm in my 40's. It seems weird to me to read into social media posts from people in their 20's, though again, I don't really read social media posts from people of any age.

[Who]

After seeing how slow Embiid & LeBron were against Canada and knowing how slow Durant is, Team USA should have picked Jaylen Brown to give them a quick forward.

They do not have enough footspeed in the frontcourt.

[Phantom255x]

If we're being honest, Jaylen's game is very similar to a healthy Kawhi in his prime. Similar height and size too. It'd make perfect sense for him to replace Kawhi. This is definitely Nike and other influences keeping Jaylen out of it. But on the flip side, it's nice the replacement was ultimately still a Celtics player. 

[Who]

They seem to be lining up like

G: Steph, Haliburton
G: Jrue, D White
F: D Booker, Ant-Man, Tatum
F: LeBron, Durant
C: Embiid, AD, Bam

They seem to want 4 guards. Three big combo guards and Steph who is like a small combo guard himself. Then they are using D Booker at SF more than guard. Ant seems to be playing both SG and SF. Tatum will get backup SF minutes. LeBron and Durant are the PFs. Three centers.

The decision for D White over Jaylen seems to be prioritizing guard play in terms of ball-handling & passing. To have 4 legit guards. Then 2 wings in Ant-Man / D Book who allow them to go small on the perimeter or big in the backcourt. Then 3 big forwards in Tatum, LeBron, Durant. 3 centers.

[blink]

After seeing how slow Embiid & LeBron were against Canada and knowing how slow Durant is, Team USA should have picked Jaylen Brown to give them a quick forward.

They do not have enough footspeed in the frontcourt.

agreed, team speed seemed really to stick out last night.
Doesn't mean it has to be JB, but Embiid looked terrible.