Jaylen Brown appeared to take aim at Kyrie Irving’s leadership when speaking on a recent podcast.
Brown was a guest on Monday’s edition of “The Woj Pod” and spent part of his interview talking about Kemba Walker, who was signed by the Boston Celtics over the offseason as a replacement for Irving.
When discussing Walker’s leadership, Brown praised Walker and contrasted it with the style of someone else. It sure sounded like Brown was talking about Irving.
“He didn’t point fingers. He didn’t blame others,” Brown said of Walker. “He said that we’re going to be alright, we’re going to learn from this … he said things that were more uplifting.”
Without naming names, Brown then brought up a different type of response he had seen to adversity.
“Usually what you’re used to seeing, maybe somebody goes into a corner, doesn’t talk to nobody. Instead of starting to hang out with their teammates, they start to hang out with their agent, their friends, their entourage … nothing changed even though the times got more difficult. When things get a little bit difficult, that’s when you get to see somebody’s true makeup and character.”
Brown was upset with Irving last year for criticizing the Celtics’ young players after a January loss to Orlando. Over the summer, Brown seemed to enjoy someone clowning Irving on social media.
The type of behavior he described in the interview — a player going into a corner and not talking with teammates when things got difficult — sounds a lot like Irving. Given how Brown feels about Irving and how well the Celtics having played without Kyrie, it wouldn’t be a surprise if that’s exactly who Brown was talking about.
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