Jaylen Brown silenced Stephen A. Smith when he won Eastern Conference finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP en route to the Celtics’ 18th championship in franchise history.
But on Wednesday, the ESPN personality found an opportunity to bark back at the Boston star.
Brown and Smith have been in a feud since late May when the “First Take” host cited an “NBA source” who claimed the 27-year-old is not widely liked due to his “I’m better than you” attitude. Brown went on to challenge Smith’s credibility, both on social media and at the Celtics’ championship parade.
The loud-mouthed pundit was largely criticized for his report, but he gained a leg to stand on when Brown was left off the Team USA roster for the Paris Olympics. The three-time All-Star had a chance to join the squad when Kawhi Leonard withdrew from competition, but the roster spot was filled by Boston teammate Derrick White.
Smith seemingly felt Team USA’s replacement decision legitimized his report.
“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!!!”
USA basketball managing director Grant Hill didn’t sufficiently explain why Brown wasn’t chosen to represent his country at this year’s Summer Games. Hill did, however, reject the theory that the Celtics star was left off due to his history with Nike.
In any event, Brown should enjoy the fruits of his labor the next few months before the C’s get back to work. And if he wants to find benefits from this situation, Brown now has even more motivation to help lead Boston to back-to-back titles.
