Before he became a bonafide star and the new face of the New York Knicks, guard Jalen Brunson played alongside superstar Luka Doncic with the Dallas Mavericks and seemed to be part of the reason the team was starting to be taken seriously as a title contender in the Western Conference.
Unfortunately for the Mavericks, Brunson was set on cashing in on his success in Dallas and had a desire to play for the Knicks and join forces with his father, Rick Brunson, who is an assistant coach under head coach Tom Thibodeau.
Although it seemed like the Mavericks had a legitimate shot of re-signing Brunson and creating a dynamic duo with Doncic, he ultimately landed in New York, which turned out to be a great move for him as he’s overtaken Julius Randle as the star attraction at Madison Square Garden.
In an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast, Brunson detailed how things fell apart in Dallas in terms of him re-signing with the team and how he eventually ended up in New York via Hoop Central.
“We tried to extend the contract. The most we could get was like 4-years, $55 million. And so, obviously we wanted to do that. I wanted to stay there. I thought I would be there a long time,” Brunson said.
Jalen Brunson was ready to sign a 4-year/$55 Million contract extension in his last season with Dallas, but Dallas said no.
(via @allthesmokeprod)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) February 21, 2024
Even though he probably would’ve gone on to have more success in Dallas and be the perfect teammate for Doncic, Brunson clearly made the right move by heading to New York and becoming the No. 1 option on the Knicks while also making the team a force to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference.
The Knicks hit a bit of a slump heading into the All-Star break with four straight losses, but New York is definitely a threat in the East as long as Brunson can stay healthy while continuing to play at a high level.
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