Analyst claims Jalen Brunson is “the best player in the Eastern Conference” over Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum

Jalen Brunson is exceeding expectations this season with the New York Knicks. After earning his first-ever NBA All-Star selection, the former Villanova guard has been on a mission and so far he has been quite successful.

For driving the NY franchise into the playoffs, Brunson understandably received numerous plaudits from fans and critics alike. But this time one specific praise has outdone everything that was said previously and the narrator of the statement is none other than Kenny Smith.

Kenny Smith claims Jalen Brunson is the best player in EC

Kenny Smith chose NY Knicks’ Jalen Brunson as his favorite player among the talented lot in the East that has 2024 MVP contenders, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum.

When the Knicks guard was occupied defeating the Eastern table toppers Boston Celtics, Smith passed his judgment on “Inside The NBA”. While talking about the All-Star’s contribution to the New York franchise’s current success, the Sports Analyst declared, “Brunson has been the best basketball player in the Eastern conference by far”.

Appearing in 75 games this season, the 27-year-old averaged 28.6 points, 6.7 assists, and 3.6 rebounds per game. Brunson single-handedly shouldered the team’s responsibilities and blame in the absence of OG Anunoby, Julius Randle, and Mitchell Robinson.

The guard might not have it all glittery this season as there were some terrible performances, however, he hung in there tight and fastened the belts to go on a rollercoaster ride showcasing back-to-back masterclasses. Brunson scored a career-high 61 points against the Spurs at the end of last month and since then has been putting up huge numbers on the board, one of which came on Thursday night against the Celtics.

Jalen Brunson powers Knicks to victory over Celtics

The Knicks recorded their third consecutive win after beating the Boston franchise in their own backyard, TD Garden. The star of the show was undoubtedly Jalen Brunson who yet again registered game-high points. The Knicks dominated the game in the first three quarters and despite Boston’s 20-point lead in the finishing quarter, they were far behind in catching up with the New Yorkers.

It took Brunson thirty minutes to add 39 points to the scoreboard while dishing out 4 assists to his teammates. Out of the 23 field goals that the guard had attempted, 15 had hit the target. He shot six deep 3-pointers and grabbed two rebounds to help the New York side with a 118-109 win.

With his offensive dominance, Brunson boosted the squad along with significant contributions from Donte DiVincenzo (17 points), 16 points from Josh Hart, and so on to snatch the win from Jayson Tatum’s Celtics. The partnership of Tatum and Jaylen Brown (33 points) was also less than Brunson’s individual points tally.

Jalen Brunson is now just two games away from showing his wizardry in the playoffs with his third-seeded Eastern team which could earn him the first major NBA title making his efforts fruitful.