New York Knicks star Jalen BrunsonHis exceptional season is forecasted to result in a place in one of the All-NBA Teams.
Bleacher Reports’ Dan Favale penciled Brunson to be in the All-NBA Third Team with Golden State‘s Stephen Curry, Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton, Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards and Los Angeles Lakers‘ Anthony Davis.
“Brunson is not an exceptional passer or more than a resistant defender. But he is one of the most unique, important and offensive engines in the entire league. And yes, he plays a lot. He’s top-10 in total minutes logged. That availability cannot be discounted.
This is not just because of Brunson’s availability.
Very few players can score about 28 points and provide seven assists per game with above-average true shooting with a ludicrously low turnover rate while working within limited offensive constraints,” Favale wrote.
Up to the games on March 8, Brunson is averaging 27.2 points with a 40.7% 3-point shooting and 6.6 assists, all personal bests, while keeping the Knicks competitive in the East’s top-four finish.
Status of Jalen Brunson’s Participation
However, there is doubt about Brunson's availability for a crucial home game against the Orlando Magic (37-26) on Friday, March 8, due to a left knee contusion.
He missed the Knicks’ 116-100 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on March 5, allowing the surging Magic, winners of their last five games, to surpass the Knicks (36-26) in the standings.
But Brunson was mostly involved in the Knicks’ Thursday practice.
“He appeared normal, looked good. Practice involves a lot of starting and stopping so it’s somewhat difficult to assess sometimes,” Hart told reporters, according to New York Daily News. “But he appeared good, appeared confident and not hesitant to make movements. So that’s definitely positive.”
With uncertainty about Brunson's availability and their other three starters — Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson — still sidelined, the Magic are 1.5-point favorites to win against the Knicks at BetUS, one of the leading offshore gambling sites.
Randle (dislocated shoulder) has progressed to light contact drills while Robinson (ankle surgery) has also advanced to shooting drills. Anunoby (elbow surgery) is on track to return first among the three as he did a full scrimmage on Thursday.
Possibility of Pairing Jalen Brunson with LeBron James
According to ESPN, the Knicks have the opportunity to pair LeBron James with Brunson and sign Anunoby again this summer.
The Knicks are in a better position than the Warriors, who pursued James at the trade deadline, if the Lakers superstar becomes available, the ESPN report said.
James could opt-in to his contract and then work out a trade, but Golden State would not be allowed to send out aggregate contracts if James’ $51.4 million salary pushed the Warriors over the second apron.
The Knicks, however, have the financial flexibility below both aprons to trade for James without losing Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby.
New York has five players (Julius Randle, Josh Hart, Mitchell Robinson, Bojan Bogdanovic and Donte DiVincenzo) earning a salary between $11.5 and $30.3 million. They also have up to eight tradable first-rounders to include in a deal.
Rumors about James being connected to the Knicks arose in the days leading up to the February 8 trade deadline with his cryptic X posts to flexing the Knicks towel in a postgame interview after a Lakers win in New York on February 3.
Before that game, James told reporters playing for the Knicks once crossed his mind.
“During my free agency period in 2010, it was one of the teams that I looked at,” James told reporters on February 3. “So I’ve had that thought in my career.”
