Jalen Brunson appears set to join Team USA's 12-man roster which will head to the 2023 FIBA World Cup later this year.
The announcement comes from Marc Stein just hours after The Athletic reported that Tyrese Haliburton, Anthony Edwards, Mikal Bridges, Austin Reaves and Bobby Portis had also committed to the team.
Brunson will be a hugely valuable addition to the team after a career-best season in his first year with the New York Knicks. After gradually improving over the first four seasons of his career with the Dallas Mavericks, he made the move to New York and excelled after being given a larger role as the starting point guard and primary ball-handler for the Knicks under coach Tom Thibodeau.
Brunson averaged 24.0 points per game over the course of the season on 49.1% shooting from the field and 41.6% from three-point range. He also dished out 6.2 assists per game. In the playoffs, he took his game to another level still, averaging 27.8 points and finishing the season with 38 points in a win-or-go-home Game 5 against the Miami Heat, and then 41 points in the following game, which turned out to be the Knicks last of the season.
Brunson's high basketball IQ ensures that his relatively diminutive stature – he stands at just 6'2″ – is no barrier to him, while his shooting ability was also on full display throughout the course of this season. Playing FIBA basketball, with more possessions played in the half-court and the ability to make good reads even more pivotal than what it is in the athleticism-driven NBA, it will be no surprise to see Brunson excel under the bright lights of World Cup basketball.