Nike is one of the more prominent sellers of basketball shoes in the world, and the brand has almost become synonymous with basketball culture at this point. Some of the brightest stars in NBA history have been endorsed by Nike over the years, such as Michael Jordan, LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
But Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown argued in an interview with Sports Illustrated‘s Chris Mannix that Nike and the sneaker industry have too much influence “over the basketball foundation.”
“For sure,” Brown said on whether his beef with Nike ended up costing him a spot on Team USA. “One, I think sneaker industries, and I’ve said this before, have way too much control over the basketball foundation. In youth sports, it’s the same. Kids are having to worry about even playing with Nike, playing well on the Adidas circuit. And they should just be working on developing their basketball skills. Instead, we’re focusing more on shoe politics, and I think that is why the rest of the world has caught up. And if we don’t do something about it, the next Olympics and the next global outings are going to look a lot different.”
Brown has been critical of Nike for years. Back in 2022, Nike cut ties with Kyrie Irving after he shared a link on social media to a documentary that is considered by many to be antisemitic, and Brown pushed back at the company for that decision.
Since when did Nike care about ethics? https://t.co/f8t2eY994v
— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) November 10, 2022
But the ill will that Brown has for the company was reignited in the summer of 2024, when Team USA announced its decision that Celtics guard Derrick White would be replacing injured Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard instead of Brown.
Brown made multiple cryptic posts on X after he was snubbed, though it’s worth noting that he texted White amid the drama to make it clear that there were no hard feelings.
Team USA’s managing director Grant Hill seemingly even insinuated that Brown is a conspiracy theorist for buying the notion that he was spurned from the squad because of his views on Nike, and Brown didn’t appreciate being labeled as such.
grant hill calling me a conspiracy theorist is disappointing I’ve been a VP since I was 21 years old I have a great understanding
— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) July 28, 2024
Thanks in large part to the play of Brown, the Celtics are in an ideal position to compete for a title once again this year. He’s averaging 22.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game in his ninth season in the league just months after he captured the Finals MVP award for Boston.
The Celtics sit as the No. 2 seed in the East behind only the Cleveland Cavaliers and picked up a win in their last game before the All-Star break on Wednesday night. Brown may not have represented his country in Paris, but he is set to soon take the court with some other of the top players in the league for the All-Star Game on Sunday.
