Jaylen Brown is clearing the air on any tension between him and Derrick White after being left off the Team USA roster, and whether or not he felt Nike had something to do with the decision.
There's been plenty of hot air devoted to Derrick White making Team USA's Olympic roster as Kawhi Leonard's injury replacement instead of Boston Celtics teammate Jaylen Brown.
On Wednesday, however, the focus finally shifted to the court for White, who made his first appearance for Team USA against Serbia in an exhibition game in Abu Dhabi in the ramp to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
And it's hard to argue with the final result.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Team USA demolished Serbia 105-79 in a convincing win over a Nikola Jokic-led squad that's expected to contend for a medal in Paris. Celtics teammates Jayson Tatum and Jrue Holiday both started for head coach Steve Kerr's group, while White came off the bench in the second quarter.
While Wednesday's game largely was the Stephen Curry show -- Curry led all scorers with 24 points with six made 3-pointers -- the Celtics trio still had its moments. Here's a look at how Tatum, Holiday and White fared in Wednesday's exhibition, which was a preview of Team USA's Group Stage opener at the Paris Olympics on July 28:
MORE CELTICS COVERAGE
Jayson Tatum
Final stat line: 21 minutes, four points (2 for 5; 0 for 2 3PT), five rebounds, two steals, +7
Tatum had his quietest offensive game in exhibition play to date, scoring four points (the fewest of any Team USA starter) on 2 of 5 shooting and going 0 for 2 from 3-point range.
The Celtics star had attempted just one 3-pointer in Team USA's two previous exhibitions combined, so we wouldn't be surprised if he seeks more offense around the basket going forward.
Tatum did make an impact defensively, recording two of the Americans' eight steals.
Jrue Holiday
Final stat line: 21 minutes, eight points (3 for 4; 2 for 2 3PT), two rebounds, two assists, one steal, +7
Holiday was the best Celtic on the floor Wednesday, knocking down both of his 3-pointers and setting up Curry for a pair of triples. He delivered one of the highlights of the game in the fourth quarter with this no-look, behind-the-back pass to set up a Curry 3:
Holiday has been solid as a starter for Team USA, and there's a good chance he remains in that role when Olympic group play begins later this month.
Derrick White
Final stat line: Nine minutes, one point (0 for 1; 1 for 2 FT), four rebounds, one assist, +6
After joining the U.S. squad over the weekend and sitting out Monday's exhibition against Australia, White showed signs of rust in his first live action since Game 5 of the NBA Finals. But as soon as White checked in, Team USA ripped off a 16-2 run to take a double-digit lead.
White finished with just one point and was 0 for 1 from the floor in 9:17 of game action, but grabbed four rebounds and tallied an assist while finishing as a plus-6.
Team USA's next exhibition is Saturday, July 20, at 3 p.m. ET against South Sudan in London.
