Jalen Brunson, Team USA, Knicks, Jamica basketaball
Getty
Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks watches a shot during warmups before their game against the Utah Jazz at the Delta Center on March 11, 2026 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
New York Knicks captain Jalen Brunson is open to representing Team Jamaica at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Brunson, whose maternal grandparents are Jamaican, was overlooked for the Team USA roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics after representing his home country at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. On a recent episode of the “Roomates Show” podcast with teammates Josh Hart and Jose Alvarado, Brunson said he was considering joining Team Jamaica because of his desire to compete on the global stage.
The superstar guard expressed his wish to play for Jamaica after Hart said he was considering joining Team Germany for the 2028 Olympics.
“You know I’m part German? I might try to get my German citizenship to play for the national team,” Hart said.
Alvarado then asked Brusnon if he expected to make the Team USA roster in 2028.
Jalen Brunson on Team Jamaica?
“I don’t know,” Hart responded.
“I could play somewhere else.”
“You can play with Jamaica,” Hart suggested.
At this point, Hart and Brunson were unsure about the criteria for a non-Jamaican citizen to represent the country when that player had already played for their home country, considering Brunson’s past Team USA experiences.
Hart suggested Jamaica could offer Brunson citizenship status to secure his services.
“They’ll get it for him if he wants to play,” Hart said of Brunson becoming a citizen.
“They would do anything to get him to play in that jersey,” Alvarado chimed in.
When asked if he would consider playing for Team Jamcaia, Brunson said, “Yeah, I think it’d be alright.”
Jalen Brunson Unlikely to Make Team USA
Per FIBA’s regulations, a player can only switch teams if another national team deemed it in the “interest of the development of basketball” in that country. However, since Brunson played for Team USA after age 17, he cannot switch “at will” and would need a formal release from USA Basketball and approval from the FIBA Secretary General to be classified a “naturalized player.” FIBA only allows one naturalized player per roster.
While Brunson is widely regarded as a top-10 or top-15 player in the league, he’s not a serious candidate for the 2028 Team USA roster, given the rise of young American stars like Cade Cunningham, Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Haliburton, Kon Knueppel, Cooper Flagg, Jalen Johnson, Scottie Barnes and Chet Holmgren. While predicting Team USA’s next Olympic roster, ESPN’s Zach Kram noted that Brunson and Donovan Mitchell, both of whom will be 31 during the 2028 Games, are unlikely to make the cut.
After not taking the trip to Paris in 2024, Brunson admitted he felt snubbed.
“I feel like I should have been one [of the players there],” Brunson told Taylor Rooks.
“I would have loved to play. Obviously, last year’s losing may have had something to do with it. I would have loved the chance to redeem myself in losing the World Cup.”
“I would have wanted to play. [From] the 41 players, you can’t go wrong with you choose. … But it’s like, it is what it is. I’m not there,” he stated. “If I get asked to do in the future, I’m not going to be like, ‘No, you guys go do it.’”