Jalen Brunson has played at an elite level throughout the postseason thus far. Is he the best player remaining in the playoffs?
In the first two playoff games against the 76ersa as, Jalen Brunson didn’t look like himself. He wasn’t shooting well from the field and it seemed like the 76ers defensive pressure was bothering him. Since Game 3 of that series, Brunson has probably performed better than any player in the postseason this year. He continues to carry this Knicks team when they need him the most and has put up some historic numbers while doing so.
Stamped in History
Furthermore, Brunson has found a way to carry the momentum from the 76ers series into this second round matchup against the Pacers. After a thrilling victory in Game 2 Wednesday night, Brunson has led the Knicks to taking a 2-0 lead over the Pacers in this series. Although he missed the second quarter due to a right foot injury, Brunson’s 24 points in the second half propelled the Knicks to a hard fought victory at MSG. Ultimately, Brunson has played at a phenomenal level but is it safe to say that he’s been the best player in basketball at the moment?
The Number 1 Spot
Recently, Stephen A. Smith, Brian Windhorst, and Shannon Sharpe had an interesting discussion on First Take about who’s been impressive in the playoffs thus far.
Now, even though there is a strong argument to be made for Anthony Edwards, I believe that Brunson has been more impressive while proving that he’s the best player in the postseason. Currently, Brunson is averaging the most points in the playoffs (35.6PPG) while also being in the Top 5 list for assists per game as well (8.1APG). In continuation, Brunson has been able to put up these averages while playing more than 42 minutes a game. Simply Incredible.
In the end, with the amount of defensive pressure he’s had to deal with alongside the injuries the team is still dealing with, it’s hard to argue against Brunson being the best player in the league right now. There’s no other player remaining in the postseason that has to carry the load that Brunson does. Somehow, he still is able to be an unstoppable force on the offensive end while giving maximum effort on the defensive end.
Previously, the media hasn’t given Brunson the credit in the past but he definitely deserves to be acknowledged as the best player in this year’s playoffs. This is something that just can’t be denied any longer.
The Knicks will be heading to Indiana this Friday night for Game 3 of this series. As I mentioned earlier, Brunson suffered a foot injury towards the end of the first quarter in Game 2. In the post game interview with NBA Insider Chris Haynes, Brunson talked about how he will “try” to be ready for Game 3. Hopefully, he will be ready to go and continue his amazing playoff run. We’ll see what he will have in store for Game 3.
Upcoming Weekend Schedule
Game 3: Knicks @ Pacers Friday 7pm ET on ESPN
Game 4: Knicks @ Pacers Sunday 3:30pm ET on ABC
