Team USA executive director Grant Hill confirmed Wednesday that it was the team’s decision to replace Kawhi Leonard with Derrick White ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics. The team reportedly coordinated with the Clippers and ultimately decided to send Leonard home.

In a press conference before a U.S. exhibition game against Canada on Wednesday, Hill said that there was an intense effort by all parties to allow Leonard to stay. The Clippers star missed most of the team’s first-round playoff series in May and was seen walking with a slight limp during Team USA training camp.

“We just felt that we had to pivot, and not to get into the particulars, in terms of what went into the decision, but we just felt it was in our best interest, but also in the Clippers’ and Kawhi’s best interest, to move into a different direction,” Hill said. “We tried. I think we all tried and we gave it a valiant effort, and unfortunately, we have to move forward.”

NBA stars naturally have limited opportunities to represent their countries in the Olympics. Leonard has never competed before, and a resurgent movement within the United States’ program likely motivated him to attempt to play as well.

After an embarrassing fourth-place showing in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, Team USA has assembled a monstrous Olympics team already being compared to the 1992 Dream Team and 2008 Redeem Team. Leonard could have had an opportunity to re-establish American dominance alongside the likes of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Anthony Edwards and countless other NBA stars.

“I think he wanted to be here, like all these guys want to be here, and we don’t take that lightly at all,” Hill said during the press conference. “It speaks to the program and the opportunity, and so, personally speaking, I know what it’s like to want to do something and your body’s just not right. … Ultimately, it didn’t work out.”

While Leonard will not get the opportunity to make his Olympic debut, White will now receive the chance just a few months after playing an integral role in the Celtics’ championship run. White previously competed for Team USA in the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup, where the team finished seventh.

Last month, Hill told uInterview exclusively: “Every USA basketball team has a target on their backs. We know we will be targeted, and teams will want to beat us.”

While Jaylen Brown’s on-court success sunk the Indiana Pacers and lifted his team to their second NBA Finals in three years, he struggled off it.

Earlier this week, Brown finished 16th in All-NBA voting, one spot short of making the third team. Brown used the snub as motivation, letting his play do the talking. The SG sent the game to overtime in game one with a game-tying three, dropped 40 points in game two and assisted on Derrick White‘s game-winning bucket in game four. Brown became the surprise Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals MVP even after a dominant performance. When Cedric Maxwell announced his name, a smile went from ear to ear as his teammates mobbed him in a rare display of emotion at half-court. After the game, when asked about what the trophy meant to him, Brown spoke from the heart:

“I wasn’t expecting it at all; I don’t ever win s—.”

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The Celtics and Brown said throughout the ECF and after they completed the series sweep yesterday that their primary goal, and NBA championship, has yet to be accomplished. Each player sacrifices points, shots, and accolades for the team to function at their highest level. However, Brown’s moment of candidness pulled back the curtain on the human aspect of playing basketball. Getting snubbed from the All-NBA team hurt Brown, and then an unnamed source added insult to injury, stating he is “not liked” with an “I-am-better-than attitude.” The California alum quieted the critics even for just a week and received his first MVP trophy.

The Celtics defeated the Indiana Pacers in game four on Monday night, 115-112, sweeping their way into the NBA Finals. Brown averaged 29.8 points and five rebounds a game on 51% shooting. Boston receives ten days off before the finals begin at T.D. Garden on June 6.

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