NBA Star Trae Young Calls Out Brazil’s Penalty Decision After Bruno Guimaraes Misses

The 2026 World Cup is barely into its knockout stage, and already we’ve got a controversy that has soccer fans and NBA players alike scratching their heads.

Brazil drew a penalty in the 10th minute of their Round of 16 match against Norway. It was a clear chance to grab an early lead. But instead of letting Vinicius Junior — their hottest scorer at the tournament — step up, midfielder Bruno Guimaraes took the ball. And he missed. Norwegian goalkeeper Orjan Nyland saved it, and the score stayed 0-0.

That decision didn’t sit well with Trae Young. The Atlanta Hawks guard posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Should’ve let Vini Kick.” And he wasn’t alone. Fans and analysts immediately started asking why Brazil’s go-to goal scorer wasn’t the one taking the penalty.

The case for Vinicius Junior

It’s not hard to see why people wanted Vini Jr. on the spot. The Real Madrid star has four goals in four games at this World Cup. He’s been arguably Brazil’s most dangerous attacker, creating chances and finishing them. In 53 appearances for the senior national team, he’s scored 13 times. He’s a proven goal scorer at the highest level.

But here’s the thing: Vini Jr. is not a great penalty taker. At Real Madrid, he’s converted just nine of 14 attempts from the spot. That’s a 64% success rate — not awful, but not what you’d call reliable. He also missed a penalty in World Cup qualifying for Brazil in 2024. So the coaching staff might have been working with data that suggested someone else was the better option.

Still, when your star player is rolling, you usually let him roll.

The bigger picture

Brazil came into this match as the clear favorite. Norway is a solid team but not expected to knock out a powerhouse like Brazil. A 0-0 scoreline at halftime doesn’t change that entirely, but it does give Norway hope. And if this game stays tight or Norway pulls off the upset, that missed penalty — and the decision to give it to Guimaraes — is going to be the story.

For now, Brazil still has 45 minutes to avoid disaster. But the questions are already here. And they won’t go away if the result doesn’t swing Brazil’s way.