Nike's Jaylen Brown subtweet, explained: Why shoe company threw shade at Celtics star with Giannis Antetokounmpo message

Jaylen Brown has never been shy about expressing his distaste toward Nike. Now, the iconic shoe brand is returning the favor.

The Celtics star caught a stray on Wednesday following a dominant performance from Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who tallied 59 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists in Milwaukee's overtime win against the Pistons. 

The loaded tweet was seemingly a response to a comment Brown made after the Celtics-Bucks game Sunday, where he called Antetokounmpo "a child" during the post-game presser. 

Nothing childish about ‘em. 59 for the Greek freak.

— Nike Basketball (@nikebasketball) November 14, 2024

While it seems like an isolated incident, those following Brown and Nike's beef know it goes way back.

Here's everything you need to know. 

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Nike's Jaylen Brown subtweet, explained

The Celtics star publicly spoke out against Nike in 2022. Brown fired off this attack after Nike cut ties with Kyrie Irving for sharing an Amazon link to an antisemitic documentary:

Since when did Nike care about ethics? https://t.co/f8t2eY994v

— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) November 10, 2022

Then, during Boston's championship season, Brown infamously began to wear Kobes with the Nike Swoosh completely removed from the shoe. 

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Flash forward to summer 2024, USA Basketball announced Derrick White would replace an injured Kawhi Leonard on the National Team roster for the Paris Olympics.

Having just won the championship and been named Finals MVP, Brown clearly felt snubbed by the decision and thought it had something to do with his public opposition to Nike, the leading Olympic sponsor for the United States. He targeted the brand yet again.

@nike this what we doing ?

— Jaylen Brown (@FCHWPO) July 10, 2024

Now in November, Brown returned to public discussion after the Celtics' 113-107 win against the Bucks.

During the game, Antetokounmpo drew an offensive foul against Brown and proceeded to fake him out for a friendly high-five. Brown didn't find it funny and later bashed him to reporters.

"Giannis is a child," Brown said. "I'm just focused on helping my team get a win and that's what we did tonight."

JB getting candid about what he thought of Giannis faking him out with a handshake 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/Mm8cOOszAx

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) November 11, 2024

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Nike, having a long-standing sneaker deal with the Antetokounmpo, found it the perfect opportunity to clap back at Brown when the Greek Freak dropped 59 against the Pistons just days later.

And the feud continues. How will Brown respond this time?