Jalen Brunson is having a career year. Despite a polarizing season in which he’s been criticized for not being a 1A player by certain media personalities, Brunson has humbly spearheaded a strong season for the New York Knicks, who are currently in fourth place despite numerous injuries to vital teammates. But has he done enough to be named to an All-NBA team?
As of this season, the league’s All-NBA teams are position-less. In other words, five point guards can technically be selected First Team All-NBA team, if that’s who receives the most votes. That means Brunson should have a better of chance of making it, as there are 15 possible spots instead of six.
Jalen Brunson’s candidacy
Brunson is averaging a career-best 27.2 points (seventh-best in the NBA), 3.6 rebounds and 6.5 assists (14th in the NBA) per game. He’s connecting on 40% of his three-point attempts while playing a career-high 35.2 minutes per game.
Furthermore, Brunson is drawing the second-most charges in the NBA (0.46 per game—he’s the only All-Star in the top-10. He’s 12th in +/- (+559), 10th in VORP (volume over replacement player and owns the 18th-best PER (player efficiency rating, 22.1).
Brunson has also impressively scored 40 or more points six times this season, which is the fifth-most 40-point games in 2023-24.
How does Brunson stack up to All-NBA competition?
Still, securing a spot on an All-NBA team is always difficult. First of all, the NBA MVP frontrunners are all essentially guaranteed a spot on an All-NBA team. So, Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum are shoo-ins.
There are others who are essentially guaranteed a spot, too. Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, Anthony Edwards and Jalen Brown are the first players that come to mind from that next group.
That’s nine players. The remaining six spots will probably be filled by the next tier of players, which includes Brunson, Devin Booker, Anthony Davis, Tyrese Haliburton, De’Aaron Fox, Steph Curry, Tyrese Maxey, LeBron James, Domantas Sabonis, Rudy Gobert and Damian Lillard,
Of that group of 11 players, Brunson is second in scoring and has the third-highest +/- per game. He's also averaging the fifth-most assists, and has posted the sixth-highest PER, too. And most importantly, he, Curry and Haliburton are the only players who are definitively the best players on their respective teams.
Guys like Donovan Mitchell, Jimmy Butler and Kyrie Irving—who would otherwise be in contention—are not eligible given that they won't appear in 65 games.
How does Knicks' success impact Brunson's All-NBA case?
One thing Jalen Brunson has going for him that his competition does not unanimously possess is New York’s success. Voters typically reward winning, and Brunson has led the Knicks to a 39-27 record as of March 16th—and they've maintained their success without Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson for much of this calendar year.
Conversely, the Los Angeles Lakers are in 9th place (36-31) and the Golden State Warriors are in 10th place (34-31) on West. Additionally, the Phoenix Suns are in seventh place, despite featuring Durant, Booker and Bradley Beal. So, Brunson should hold the trump card over Booker, Davis, James, and/or Curry.
For what it’s worth, New York has had an All-NBA player every season in which they've made the playoffs since 2000. Julius Randle represented New York last season (Third Team), as well as in 2020-21 (Second Team). Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler and Amare Stoudemire all qualified at some point between 2010 and 2013, as well.
Brunson has made a strong case for himself to be included as an All-NBA player. He, along with the organization and its fans, are probably more focused on the Knicks' success heading into the postseason. But voters must reward Brunson—and, by extension, New York—for their strong season. While it doesn't impact anything on the floor, it represents another important step for the team in its quest for relevance. And it's also incredibly well-deserved.
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