Jaylen Was On The Outer. He’s Now Key To Rollers’ Championship Ambition

Two years ago, Jaylen Brown went to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games still discovering the dimensions of his own game. 

His ascent had come quickly. Months earlier, the then 19-year-old had been left out of the Rollers squad charged with securing Australia’s passage to Paris – a disappointment that landed heavily for someone who had grown up wanting to play for his country. 

Brown responded by going to Italy, training twice a day and testing himself in games against men on weekends. Back home, he joined the Darwin Salties in the National Wheelchair Basketball League. He kept playing, kept working and, before long, Paris was somehow back in the picture. 

By the time the Rollers departed for the Paralympic Games, Brown was going with them, a rise Head Coach Brad Ness described as “unbelievable”. 

Paris provided a rapid education. Players Brown had watched for years were suddenly teammates; across the court were some of the best in the world. He scored five points on debut against the Netherlands and then 22 against Spain, an early glimpse of the player he might become. 

Two years later, there is a different quality to Brown’s return to the international stage. 

Still among the younger members of the Rollers, he comes to his first World Championships with more experience, greater responsibility within the group and something he was only beginning to discover in Paris: certainty in what he can offer. 

PA: You went from missing the Rollers’ qualifying team to making your Paralympic debut in the space of a few months. Looking back now, how much did that period shape you as a player? 

JB: “It was a really important period for me. Missing out on the qualifying team was obviously disappointing, but it gave me a lot of motivation to keep improving and prove I belonged at that level. 

“To then make my Paralympic debut a few months later was pretty special, and I think the whole experience helped me mature a lot as a player.” 

PA: Paris 2024 announced you on the international stage pretty quickly, including that 22-point game against Spain. Do you feel like you head into these World Championships as a different player, with different expectations? 

JB: “Definitely. Paris gave me a lot of confidence and showed me that I could compete at that level. 

“I’ve continued to develop since then, so I probably come into these World Championships with a bit more confidence in my game and a better understanding of what I can contribute to the team.” 

Some of the most telling signs of Brown’s evolution have been less conspicuous.  

His offensive instincts have long attracted attention, but Ness believes it is his work without the ball – particularly defensively – that is increasingly distinguishing him. Exposure to the world’s best has demanded a more complete game. 

PA: Brad Ness has said people notice your offensive flair, but it’s your defence that really sets you apart. Is that something you’ve consciously worked to build into your game? 

JB: “Defence is something I’ve continued to work on and having the opportunity to match up against some of the best players in the world has helped me improve a lot in that area. 

“It’s challenged me to keep developing and become a more aggressive and complete player at both ends of the court.” 

Long before the Rollers, however, there was another influence. 

Brown discovered wheelchair basketball through his mother, Louise McLean, whose own involvement in the sport meant basketball was never far away. As a child at one of her training sessions in Brisbane, Brown noticed wheelchair basketball being played on an adjoining court. He climbed into a chair and tried it. 

“That’s where it all started,” he has recalled. 

PA: You discovered wheelchair basketball at a young age through your mum’s involvement in the sport. How significant has her influence been on the player you’ve become? 

JB: “Mum’s had a huge influence on me. She was the reason I was introduced to wheelchair basketball in the first place and she’s supported me throughout the whole journey. 

“Having someone so close to me who understands the sport has been really valuable, and she’s definitely played a big part in the player I’ve become.” 

Looking back can lend a neatness to sporting careers they rarely possess in real time. 

Brown’s path certainly wasn’t linear. There was Italy, Darwin and the chance to test himself against older, more experienced players. There was the disappointment of missing selection, followed almost immediately by an opportunity he could scarcely have anticipated. 

Paris accelerated everything. 

The World Championships in Ottawa feels different. The novelty has receded and Brown is no longer simply trying to absorb life inside the Rollers. 

PA: You’re still one of the younger Rollers, but you’re no longer the teenager arriving at his first Paralympics. How has your role within the team evolved since Paris? 

JB: “I think I’m a lot more comfortable within the group now. Before Paris, everything was new and I was just trying to take in as much as I possibly could. 

“I also think as a group we have been able to create such an amazing and fun culture amongst us where we all have each other’s backs, so I feel more confident contributing when the team needs me and know they will do the same for me. 

“There’s still always plenty for me to learn, though.” 

That balance – greater assurance without any sense of being the finished product – perhaps best captures where Brown finds himself at 21. 

The Rollers have evolved around him, too. 

Since finishing seventh at the 2023 World Championships, Australia has been developing a faster, more aggressive style built around sustained pressure and the athleticism of its playing group. In July came an encouraging measure of that progress: a 77 – 68 victory over the US to win the Toronto Invitational. 

Brown was part of that group alongside the likes of Tom O’Neill-Thorne, Tristan Knowles and Luke Pople. Now comes the larger test. 

PA: What would a successful World Championships look like for you personally, and for this Rollers group? 

JB: “As a team, we want to put ourselves in a position to compete for a medal. And I truly believe that this team is capable of that. 

“Personally, success is about playing my role and doing whatever the team needs from me. If I can contribute at both ends of the floor and help us win games, I’ll be happy with that.” 

Two years ago, Brown was chasing an opportunity he had every reason to believe had passed him by; in Ottawa, the question is no longer whether he belongs at this level, but what he and the Rollers can do now that he does. 

The Rollers at 2026 World Championships 

The World Championships take place in Ottawa, Canada from September 9 – 19, with 28 teams competing for the world title. 

Australia will face Argentina, Türkiye and Great Britain in Pool B, opening its campaign against Argentina on September 11. 

The Rollers qualified by going undefeated at the 2025 Asia Oceania Zone Championships and arrive in Canada with momentum after defeating the US 77–68 to win the Toronto Invitational in July. 

The 12-player squad features 10 members of the 2025 Asia Oceania Zone Championship-winning team, alongside returning Paris Paralympians Sam White and Eithen Leard. 

Rollers World Championships Squad: Jaylen Brown, Jontee Brown, Steven Elliott, Phil Evans, Tristan Knowles, Bill Latham, Eithen Leard, Tom O’Neill-Thorne, Frank Pinder, Luke Pople, Jeremy Tyndall and Sam White. Head Coach: Brad Ness.

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