Topic / Subject

ESPN projected a 2028 Team USA Olympic roster and even after calling MVP candidate Jaylen Brown a “worthy candidate,” the list still left him outside the Top 12, kicking the “snub” conversation back into gear.

TL;DR

ESPN’s 2028 roster prediction didn’t include Jaylen Brown in its final 12, despite mentioning him as a legit candidate. With Brown sitting in the MVP conversation this season, the omission is instant debate fuel.

Key Details

ESPN published a “Predicting the 2028 USA Olympic basketball roster: Top 12 players” piece and did not include Jaylen Brown in its projected 12-man roster.

The projected Top 12 list in the piece includes: Flagg, Knueppel, Duren, Amen Thompson, Barnes, Cunningham, Edwards, Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Haliburton, Adebayo, and Tatum, per ESPN.

ESPN still name-checked Brown as a potential 2028 option (noting he’d be 31 in 2028) — but didn’t put him on the final list. The “snub” storyline is extra spicy because Brown was left off the original 2024 Olympic roster and also passed over as Kawhi Leonard’s replacement in favor of Derrick White, per ESPN’s prior reporting.

NBA.com’s Kia MVP Ladder recently placed Brown in the “Next 5” tier of the award chase.

Breakdown

This is prediction-content doing what it always does: take a hypothetical roster, leave one big name out, and watch the fans turn it into a courtroom drama.

But with Jaylen Brown, there’s actual history here. The Paris 2024 cycle already left him feeling a type of way — and ESPN documented the awkward moment when Derrick White got the replacement call instead. So when a major outlet runs a 2028 projection and Brown still isn’t in the 12, it reads like the same movie again.

The other accelerant: Brown’s current season. If you’re being talked about as a real MVP-level guy (even if you’re in that “next tier”), it’s harder for people to accept “yeah, but not Top 12 for Team USA in 2028.”

What to Watch Next

Whether Brown comments at all (he doesn’t have to say much for this to keep rolling). Any follow-up from ESPN or other outlets explaining the roster math (position fit, age curve, role assumptions). Where Brown sits on the MVP ladder over the next month — because momentum changes the conversation fast. Any USA Basketball chatter that hints at what kind of roster they want for LA 2028 (more size, more shooting, more defense, etc.).

Sources

ESPN — Predicting the 2028 USA Olympic basketball roster: Top 12 players ESPN — Jaylen Brown, Derrick White “good” after Brown’s Team USA jabs NBA.com — Kia MVP Ladder: Cade Cunningham sprints into Top 5

Comment

If Brown finishes this season as a legit MVP finalist, do you think Team USA still leaves him out in 2028 or does that force their hand?