Jalen Brunson is now the lead hero of the New York Knicks, but fans remember a time when he was a supporting star behind Luka Doncic on the Dallas Mavericks.
A lot has changed since then, and since he was drafted by the team in 2018.
Mark Cuban spoke about Brunson as a draft prospect and what they saw in him.
He also talked about how much the player has grown.
“He was just some chubby guy…we picked him 33rd…His go-to was a spin or move to the left & he’d fall away & never got the foul…Now his midrange is money…That’s what you don’t know when you draft…mental capacity…will they work hard to improve,” Cuban said.
"He was just some chubby guy…we picked him 33rd…His go-to was a spin or move to the left & he'd fall away & never got the foul…Now his midrange is money…That's what you don't know when you draft…mental capacity…will they work hard to improve"
– Mark Cuban on Jalen Brunson pic.twitter.com/4wYCMrOgFN
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) September 11, 2025
Brunson was indeed selected as the 33rd pick in the 2018 draft.
When the Mavericks took him, they didn’t have the highest hopes for his career.
They saw him as someone who might grow into a full-time starter, but it would take time and a lot of dedication.
In his first season, he averaged 9.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists on 46.7 percent from the field.
He started in 38 of his 73 games.
A couple of seasons later, he started to ramp things up even more, and he was soon in the running for Sixth Man of the Year.
Despite what some people expected, Brunson showed that he was able to transition from college to professional basketball with ease, and he was soon scoring 16.3 points per game.
But then he was off to the New York Knicks, a move that the Mavericks still regret.
Since then, he has gotten only better and is one of the most respected players in the league.
Cuban will attest that Brunson is one of the biggest success stories in recent NBA history.
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