Knicks’ Jalen Brunson vindicates Mike Brown’s ‘unguardable’ praise

In Jalen Brunson, the New York Knicks have the most coveted kind of player in basketball: a superstar. The point guard’s 47-point performance against the Miami Heat on Sunday fittingly concluded his MVP-caliber week, for which he earned his second Player of the Week designation of the season. It also vindicated a bold statement Knicks head coach Mike Brown recently made about his point guard’s offensive game. On Friday night, even after a loss, he essentially deemed Brunson ‘unguardable.’

“I don’t think anybody gives him problems. Now, everybody gets up for him, to play him, like they should. They’ll try to turn him, and make it difficult. But usually, when he ends up shooting the ball, he gets to a spot and creates his space. And it’s whether he makes or he misses the shot…that’s all it is, more than anything else,” Brown told reporters after a 116-107 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

On Tuesday, Brunson won both the NBA Cup Championship and MVP. On Wednesday against the Pacers, he called his own game-winning shot before making it. That left Brown discussing him amongst fabled greats like Steph Curry, LeBron James, and Kobe Bryant. The 29-year-old point guard did struggle in Friday’s loss, making just seven of his 22 shots. He redeemed himself quickly with his 27-point first half against the Heat.

Sunday’s game was the team’s fourth in six days, but Brunson delivered his highest-scoring game at Madison Square Garden. His 15-of-26 shooting supported Brown’s claim that there is no archetype of defender that typically impedes his offensive attack. He tallied eight assists without turning the ball over once. That made him the first NBA player this season to record at least 40 points and five assists without a turnover, according to the Knicks.

Brunson’s MVP campaign blazes on with gem vs. Heat

This season, Brown has sung Brunson’s MVP praises nightly. The coach told reporters in late November that MVP discussions should “start and end with” the best players from each conference’s top three teams. Brunson has certainly been the best player on the Knicks, the second seed in the East, this year.

“When you have to [play] Jalen Brunson, you’re gonna be up,” Brown told reporters on Friday. “Because you want to show everybody that in your mind, you’re on the level…have the ability to be able to do it.”

Despite offseason discourse about how Brunson’s involvement would decrease, his usage rate has gone up. Even amid the bump from 28.9% to 30.8%, the scoring machine is still producing top-tier impact. His +5.7 offensive estimated plus-minus (O-EPM) matches his career-best mark from 2024, which was in the NBA’s 99th percentile per Dunks & Threes.

Only six players have a higher O-EPM than Brunson this season. One is Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has played just 17 games for the 11-18 Milwaukee Bucks. The others are Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic, and Donovan Mitchell.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets are the Western Conference’s first and third seeds, with Gilgeous-Alexander and Jokic having perennial candidacy for a reason. Curry’s Warriors are still under .500 as Christmas nears. Doncic is shining in Los Angeles and just got his co-star back. The Lakers, however, are only fourth in the West. And the 15-14 Cavaliers, whom the Knicks play on Christmas, have underwhelmed as much as any team.

Perhaps Mitchell will bring coal to The Garden in the form of 3-pointers, impressing enough national viewers to spark an MVP run. Cade Cunningham did not win the NBA Cup but might continue to outpace New York in the standings. Doncic may very well lead his Lakers to a top-three seed in the West before year’s end.

For now, though, Brunson presents as the clear third choice for MVP behind Jokic and Gilgeous-Alexander. That, and the NBA Cup Championship, is as great a Christmas present as New York’s star could have delivered Knick fans.

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