The Dallas Mavericks are gearing up for 2019-20 with high expectations of punching their first postseason ticket in a long while and the first without their longstanding franchise cornerstone. One player who is getting ready for the grind is incoming sophomore Jalen Brunson who is touted by Mavs officials as having the ‘most impressive' offseason by far.
Several Mavericks folks, separately and unprompted, have told me that the Mav who perhaps has had the most impressive summer is Jalen Brunson.
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) September 25, 2019
The 23-year-old is part of the large Mavs contingent training in Miami as part of a voluntary attempt to develop some chemistry with each other, particularly the returning Kristaps Porzingis. This is also on top of Brunson being named to the USA Basketball select team, and while he didn't make the main roster despite the unprecedented number of withdrawals, it was still a badge of honor recognizing the rookie season he had.
Brunson is widely considered as one of the steals of the 2018 NBA Draft. Projected as a late first for quarterbacking a pair of championships for Villanova and his steady playmaking and scoring, the 6-foot-3 point guard slipped to the second round to the Mavs at the 33rd spot despite already having a bevy of guards in their lineup. His selection led to the team's confidence in allowing free agents' Yogi Ferrell and Seth Curry (who has since returned) to pursue opportunities with other teams.
Brunson posted averages of 9.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists on 46.7-percent shooting in just 21 minutes of action. He also started a number of games after an unfortunate season-ending injury to JJ Barea and the trade of Dennis Smith Jr., providing some steady minutes at the point.
It's unclear yet how many minutes Brunson is looking at given the acquisition of Delon Wright (who plays the same position) but expect the former Wildcat to stay hungry and ready.
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