‘I think it’s cowardice’: Jaylen Brown discussed comments of unnamed source with Stephen A. Smith
"Honestly I couldn't wait to address this unnamed source."
Several months after ESPN pundit Stephen A. Smith and Celtics star Jaylen Brown went back and forth about comments made by an unnamed source, the two sat down for a recent interview to hash out their differences.
Smith, speaking on his daytime show “First Take” in May amid the Celtics’ playoff run, said that an unnamed source texted him mid-show that Brown was “not liked because of his ‘I am better than you’ attitude,” and that it was the “same reason [Brown] is not as marketable as he should be.”
Brown quoted the video on social media with the now-famous request: “State your source.”
Smith responded, leading to a continued dialogue between the two (along with a “state your source” shirt that Brown wore to the Boston victory parade following the Celtics win in the NBA Finals).
Fittingly, Brown donned the same shirt for his recent interview with Smith.
“I wore this shirt because this is where I wanted to start the conversation,” Brown said to Smith, adding that he thinks the issue is “bigger than both you and I.”
“I know just because of your credentials that you’re never going to reveal your source because you abide by something called journalistic integrity,” Brown acknowledged. And while Smith initially said that the interview would take some time to work its way onto the subject, Brown decided to go right into it.
“A couple months back, you recited an unnamed source who I felt attacked my character,” Brown explained. “And, one, I didn’t really get a chance to defend myself. And two, the damage kind of is already done, and I think journalistic integrity goes two ways.
“For me, I think a lot of people were upset, as was I,” he said, noting that he understands Smith’s journalistic obligations to protect his sources.
In response, Smith shared his perspective.
“Let me use this example that you’re talking about,” he told Brown. “What I said was texted to me about you, and by the way, others had said it as well. I wasn’t talking about how I feel, you and I have been cool for years. You’ve always been good to me. What I was trying to say was: This brother is great. He’s great on the basketball court. He’s great off the basketball court. He’s an individual of very high integrity, highly educated, whom most people that you encounter consider you nothing short of brilliant, and yet these opportunities that clearly you’re deserved of and should be afforded to you, was not.
“And so when I brought that up, I literally get a text in the middle of the show, and immediately after the show I got three separate phone calls, and they were like, ‘Yo, this guy is not liked by some of the powers that be, because he’s smart, because he’s outspoken, because he’s principled, and he’s defiant, and he’s not easily manipulated, these are things that are costing him,” Smith continued. “I didn’t look at it as something that was smearing your character. I looked at it as individuals basically pointing out that you’re not liked, and I completely understand why folks who are in positions of power and decision-making positions, you wouldn’t like somebody, because they usually don’t like folks that are principled.”
Brown considered his response before addressing the unnamed source directly.
“To be honest, I’m going to come clean. Because I wanted to have this conversation, but I honestly I couldn’t wait to address this unnamed source,” he said. “I know they probably will be watching this, because people like that are always watching, and I wanted to let them know that I had a great summer. Simple as that. I traveled the world. I went to Umrah. I won two MVPs. I launched ‘Black Wall Street’ in Oakland and made a music video. I had a blast.
“Basically I wanted to say to them that I think it’s cowardice,” Brown added of the unnamed source’s comments. “I think historically, unnamed sources have attacked some of our greats. I/we are not responsible for what they lack in design. Frankly, they can call all their buddies, their pals and friends from all over the world, all the unnamed sources and they can shove it where they got it from. Whether they think I’m marketable or not, I walk with God. I’m going to be me and stand with my community, in this life and the next. And that’s my journalistic integrity.”
Smith questioned Brown over why he thinks an unnamed source stating how they feel a person is perceived would be considered bad.
Brown noted that he can accept judgement to a point, but that the comments Smith reported went a step too far.
“They didn’t just say that I wasn’t liked, they said I wasn’t marketable, they said I was arrogant, I carried myself with a certain demeanor, and that line gets crossed between critiquing someone’s performance, not liking them for some reason, and then attacking someone’s character,” he reasoned. “I think journalistic integrity goes both ways. I never had a chance to respond, or defend myself.”
For Brown, the subject of unnamed sources has negative connotations.
He cited the pre-draft comments made by an anonymous NBA general manager prior to being picked third overall by the Celtics in 2016. The GM claimed that Brown was “too smart for the league.”
“When I got drafted, they said that I was too smart — a source, an unnamed source — said that I was too smart to be a basketball player or something like that,” he told Smith. “And that would hurt my draft stock because it was a form of questioning authority. This unnamed source, who now has said back in 2016, it was a very popular subject at the time — and this source kind of reminds me of that as well. I actually figured out who that source was. But I know because of your credentials, your background, your journalistic integrity, we’re never going to figure out who that one is.”
Brown and Smith continued in the interview, covering a range of topics ahead of the new NBA season.
Inevitably, the two touched on the other controversial aspect of Brown’s offseason: His on-and-off exchanges with USA Basketball and Nike. Brown, who has claimed multiple times that his omission from Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics was due partly to his past criticism of Nike, was asked for his thoughts on the future of possibly playing for the national team.
“I’ll say this,” said Brown. “In 2028, if I have to sign to Nike to increase my likelihood to play [with] USA Basketball, I’ll pass.”
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