Comments on: 2023-24 Game Thread: Knicks vs. Bucks: (Christmas Opener)

By: Brother Love

Brother Love — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 06:40:31 +0000

Jalen Brunson is maybe like the 8th or 9th best point guard in the league.

He’s probably not even a top 20 talent.

And yet.

By: Donnie Walsh

Donnie Walsh — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 06:27:51 +0000

It’s crazy that, for as good as Brunson has been, he really shouldn’t be in any reasonable MVP discussion. Not in a league that has Shai, Jokic, Doncic, and Embiid. (Shai, alone, plays the same position, has all of Brunson’s numbers supersized, plus leads the league in steals and never turns the ball over. It’s kind of ridiculous.)

By: Z--man

Z--man — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 05:08:36 +0000

“Notably, none of those were the year Dirk won a championship”

Dirk was tied for 9th in OBPM that year. Of the 8 guys above him, 5 were league MVPs and the others were Kevin Love, Chris Paul, and Dwyane Wade. He was pretty much a 50-40-90 guy on a 32% usage. He went on to win finals MVP.

Brunson is not in the same stratosphere as Dirk was then.

By: Z--man

Z--man — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 04:48:30 +0000

Back on December 9, right after the Milwaukee-Boston IST debacle and Mitch going down, I very nervously said this about the upcoming 12 games through MIN on 1/1/24:

“So assuming Brunson’s ankle thing is just a tweak, 6-6 seems like a high-water mark, and 4-8 is not a disaster. I’d probably sign up for 5-7.”

Pretty happy I didn’t have a chance to sign up for 5-7!!

By: Early Bird Writes

Early Bird Writes — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 04:46:25 +0000

You’re kidding, right? I mean, at Brunson’s age, Dirk led the entire NBA in OBPM twice in a row! And that’s in a league with LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, etc., etc….Dirk had 8 seasons with an OBPM higher than Brunson’s, and he’d probably be even more effective in today’s game.

Notably, none of those were the year Dirk won a championship

By: Z--man

Z--man — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 04:41:21 +0000

It’s starting to seem like Jaime Jaquez Jr. is really freakin’ good…

By: Z--man

Z--man — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 04:23:20 +0000

“As for a championship 1a, offensively he’s probably better than Dirk…”

You’re kidding, right? I mean, at Brunson’s age, Dirk led the entire NBA in OBPM twice in a row! And that’s in a league with LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, etc., etc….Dirk had 8 seasons with an OBPM higher than Brunson’s, and he’d probably be even more effective in today’s game.

I know we are all thrilled at finally acquiring a guy of Brunson’s caliber and locking him up on maybe the best non-rookie deal in the NBA for a measly tampering charge. It is truly a joy to watch him kicking the league’s ass. But let’s see him make a couple of all-star teams before we start saying he is better than all-time great offensive players.

By: BigBlueAL

BigBlueAL — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 03:27:51 +0000

Philly now 0-4 without Embiid. Even with Maxey’s emergence I’m not sure if Philly would even be a play in team without Embiid.

By: ThisChicanery

ThisChicanery — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 03:21:17 +0000

His eFG+ and TS+ are 102 and 103, not elite. He’s 15th in PPG.

Brunson is not better than Dirk

By: walkerandbendercornerstones

walkerandbendercornerstones — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 03:19:46 +0000

Brunson won’t win MVP this season but he’ll make up for it by winning the Finals MVP.