“Prepare for the worst”: Jalen Brunson reveals what was going through his mind leading up to NBA All-Star snub
In his second season playing for the New York Knicks, Jalen Brunson is having a career year with standout performances left and right. However, he wasn't included in the Eastern Conference All-Star starters as Damian Lillard and Tyrese Haliburton took up the guard spots. In an interview with Ashley Nevel, Brunson talked about his thought process leading to the NBA All-Star snub.
Despite the possibility of Jalen Brunson being included in the NBA All-Star reserves, it's still a different feeling to secure a spot with the starters. Despite an excellent season in leading the New York Knicks to third place (31-17 record) in the Eastern Conference standings, voters felt that Lillard and Haliburton were more deserving to be included with the starters.
"(0:16) In situations like this I always kind of tell myself, 'It's not happening, prepare for the worst,'" Brunson said. "So I don't like get disappointed. I mean it is what it is but I'm like obviously for Dame to get it like he's an idol, he's a person I look up to before I got to the league."
Coming from Brunson's comments, it is a testament to how he carries himself on the court. There are only a few things in life that one can control and Jalen Brunson understands this as he doesn't want to get ahead of himself and simply remain in the moment.
Looking at the Eastern Conference, there are too many elite point and shooting guards to choose from with only two roster spots available for the starters. The mere fact that Brunson is included in the discussion is a sign of how far he's come in his NBA career.
Josh Hart tells Jalen Brunson how he plans on slowing him down if he is guarding him
During the same interview with Ashley Nevel, Jalen Brunson decided to call Josh Hart to ask an important question, "If you were guarding me, how would you stop me?"
"(0:38) Try to be physical," Hart said. "... You're gonna do 14 pivot shots and shot fakes before you actually shoot the ball ... jump somewhat back because you like jump into people and get fouled. With you being able to play so well off two feet it's tough. ... At some point I'm gonna jump."
This season, the Knicks star is averaging 26.8 points (48.0% shooting, including 42.2% from 3-point range) and 6.5 assists per game. There's no denying that Brunson is a tough cover to handle for opposing teams. His combination of elite shotmaking and the ability to get to the basket at will can cause any team's defenses some headaches.
Being his teammate, Hart admitted that fouling Brunson is evident at this point just because of how smart he reads the game and his different ways of getting shots up. With him leading the Knicks' offensive flow, Jalen Brunson is required to do a lot for his team's success, which has allowed him to grow and mature into the kind of offensive threat he is today.