GREENBURGH, N.Y. (AP) — Jalen Brunson’s shot at stardom is clear. He just has to find a way to surpass the player with the longest scoring streak in the postseason for three decades, someone named Michael Jordan.
Brunson will try to help the New York Knicks take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday in the only game on the NBA playoff schedule.
Brunson scored 43 points Monday in the Knicks’ 121-117 Game 1 victory. He has scored 40 or more in four consecutive games, becoming the first player to do so in the postseason since Jordan in the 1993 NBA Finals, and he is just the fourth to do so in history.
He has reiterated that he never goes into a game thinking about how much he needs to score.
“I think, what can we do, how can we be aggressive, how can we attack and where can we get the best advantage for our team?” Brunson said Tuesday. “And it has nothing to do with me needing a number of points. “I just read how it’s being played, that’s my mentality and that’s how it’s always been.”
His coach Tom Thibodeau first noticed Brunson when he became a high school star at Illinois. He has always been impressed by the way he cares much more about the team’s success than any individual goal.
Brunson continues his first All-Star season by leading all players in scoring this postseason by averaging 36.6 points per game.
After his first three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks, he signed with the Knicks in July 2022, and has led them to two East semifinals after not having won a playoff series since 2013.
Donte DiVincenzo knows Brunson well from when they were NCAA teammates at Villanova. He knows that he is able to anticipate what opponents will do as the matches progress.
“He studies the game, knows how teams are going to adjust, and continues to make adjustments throughout the game,” DiVincenzo said. “Find different ways to achieve success.”
2024-05-07 21:49:00
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