Boston Celtics

Celtics’ Jaylen Brown meets with former President Barack Obama

Brown posted about his visit with the former President on Instagram and gave Obama his Celtics jersey.

Jaylen Brown Celtics
Jaylen Brown. Michael Dwyer/AP

By Khari Thompson

1 minute to read
Recent Links

Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown is no stranger to making news off the court as much has he has on it with his stellar play.

The 24-year-old has been increasingly outspoken about racial and social justice issues since the tumultuous protests following the murder of George Floyd last May. He even helped lead a protest in his hometown of Atlanta in the days after Floyd’s killing and repeatedly has used his platform to address continuing issues of racism in America.

His activism has apparently caught the eye of former President Barack Obama.

Brown shared Monday via his social media account that he met with Obama, taking a picture with the former President holding Brown’s No. 7 Celtics jersey. “What a great opportunity to learn today @barackobama thank you for taking the time,” he wrote in his caption.

The post also included a quote from a 2008 Super Tuesday speech from Obama: “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”

Advertisement:

The meeting further stands out because of Obama’s role in the NBA’s protest in the Orlando playoff bubble last August after the shooting of Jacob Blake by a Kenosha, Wisconsin police officer.

Obama reportedly spoke with senior NBA players like Chris Paul and LeBron James about how to use their platform to raise awareness about racial injustice during the playoffs, even talking several players out of leaving the bubble altogether.

He also tweeted out his support for NBA and WNBA coaches and players for their activism as they sat out games following Blake’s shooting.

While Brown’s visit with Obama is the main story, there appears to be another noteworthy piece of information from Brown’s photo: his injured right wrist appears to be healing well.

Advertisement:

The All-Star forward is not wearing the cast he had worn on the wrist he had season-ending surgery on in May in the photo. That could portend good news for his rehab ahead of the 2021 season.

To comment, please create a screen name in your profile

Conversation

This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com