Fresh off being named NBA Clutch Player of the Year, there’s nobody more equipped to take a shot in the final minutes of a close game than Jalen Brunson.
While that’s great to have, the Knicks point guard also understands his role goes beyond just scoring and that in certain situations he needs to give it up and pass the ball more.
Speaking to reporters after practice on Thursday, Brunson said after watching film of New York’s Game 2 loss to the Detroit Pistons that “there were a couple of possessions where I had some bad shots.”
“That’s on me to just understand the situation where I need to get off of it,” he continued, clarifying that he meant he needs to pass the ball more.
Despite having “some bad shots”, Brunson still finished with 37 points on 12-of-27 shooting from the field (4-for-12 from three) and almost willed the Knicks to a win. However, the 27 shots he took was almost nine shots more than the 18.5 field goal attempts he averaged in the regular season.
In fact, in Game 1 — a 123-111 win — Brunson also went 12-for-27 from the field and scored a game-high 34 points.
None of this should diminish Brunson’s role as a facilitator, though, as the point guard still managed to have eight assists in Game 1 and seven assists in Game 2 (almost half of New York’s season-low 15 total assists), right on par with his season average of 7.3
Regardless, for the Knicks to have success in the postseason, other players besides Brunson will need to step up in big moments so getting his teammates involved more often can only help in doing that. Karl-Anthony Towns, for example, had just 10 points in Game 2 and didn’t attempt a shot in the fourth quarter.
“That’s the toughest part is trying to find that balance,” said Josh Hart about Brunson. “I think him coming in, maybe at the start of the game, try to get some of these guys involved and get them free flowing and feeling great… It’s a feeling out process, but the good thing is it’s all fixable things.”
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