“How could you possibly top that?” – Jalen Brunson gives a glimpse of ‘natural leader’ during team USA camp, says Steve Kerr
Jalen Brunson looks like a lock at the starting point guard position in the Team USA roster that is headed to the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
Coach Steve Kerr seemed impressed with the way the six-foot-one guard handled himself inside the basketball court and commanded respect from his teammates.
In the practice sessions of Team USA, Brunson has stood out, judging from what Kerr is saying to the media. More so, the former Villanova standout continues to surprise the team's coaching staff.
"The Jalen dunk ended things," Kerr said in a report by Tim Bontemps of ESPN, "Because how could you possibly top that?"
@FlyByKniteJALEN BRUNSON DUNK ALERT 👀
🎥@FlyByKnite
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Brunson made his first year with the New York Knicks count as he was considered a 2023 NBA All-Star Game snub.
The two-time NCAA champion was also in the NBA Most Improved Player conversation in the 2022-23 season. This was after he made a jump averaging career highs of 24.0 points and 6.2 assists per game along with a 41% three-point field goal shooting.
According to Kerr, Jalen Brunson has that innate leadership gene inside of him and it just comes out automatically. He said:
"I think Jalen is such a natural leader. Because he's a point guard, he immediately comes to mind. He's the one who's leading the '1, 2, 3 USA' chant. Some guys just, it just comes naturally to them."
Steve Kerr looks to experiment with putting Jalen Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton playing together inside the basketball court
Coach Steve Kerr is somewhat outside of his comfort zone as none of his Golden State Warriors players are currently rostered in Team USA. Despite that, he is very much enjoying seeing other players' potential and trying out new things with them.
Since the official Team USA roster has been announced, it has always been a question of who will be the starting point guard between Indiana Pacers Tyrese Haliburton and New York Knicks' Jalen Brunson.
Team USA PGs Jalen Brunson & Tyrese Haliburton put up shots before their first game Monday, a friendly versus Puerto Rico
(📸:@CloseUp360) pic.twitter.com/tLUkRjaCJo
But after a few practices, Kerr hopes to put both point guards together inside the basketball court from time to time just like what he plans to do with Stephen Curry and Chris Paul for the Golden State Warriors.
"Yeah, we played them separately the first two quarters and then we put them together," said Kerr. "Guys who have feel and can pass, they can play with anybody. But it's fun. It's fun having kind of a dual point guard lineup out there
Team USA will be opening their 2023 FIBA World Cup campaign on August 25 as they are bracketed with Greece, New Zealand and Jordan.