Jalen 'Can He Play Alongside Luka?' Brunson

[SportPsychMav]

Most of the time he looks lost, playing outside the flow of the team. 
He feels emotionally out of place not knowing his role. 
When he passes he makes good decision but more often than not he is going iso and takes bad shots.

I hope he slows it down and finds a role that suites him. 
I'm afraid he is so used to being a commander it is hard for him to be a roleplayer now.

[dirkfansince1998]

On/off  obviously is a flawed stat and even worse in small sample sizes but Brunson is 2nd behind Boban (only played 11 minutes) among all Mavs at +22.
I like him when he runs the second unit. Don´t really like him with the starters. Brunson needs the ball to make an impact. Not a good shooter. Not a good defender.
Ideally he is JJBs heir and he has shown a lot of promise. He plays like a vet and has an old school game. A midrange jumper, guard post ups and his shot fakes aren´t a common skill set.

[vfromlmf]

Brunson is a point guard who's playing all his minutes at off guard. He can be effective but it's not an ideal role for him. 

I think the critical point is off-guard may be a better role for Brunson given how the team is constructed, than it is for Wright or Doncic, both of whom clearly need the ball. 

Ultimately, Donnie Nelson was probably on to something when they prioritized a big-time scoring guard like Kemba Walker to pair with Doncic. That's probably an ideal backcourt, with a guy like Brunson (or Wright) getting backup minutes on the ball.

[ClutchDirk]

Not worried...I was thinking he could start but the team looks different when he is running the Point when Luka sits...he is able to pick apart second units and defenses have to react to that different style he plays...he is a low turnover player who makes very little mistakes passing or penetrating...usually when he is in we are outscoring the other team...he is not super athletic but he uses his great BBIQ to be a slight or little more positive defender...

Main thing is how much we are paying him vs. production returns...and still get a couple more years of his rookie scale pay...

[SportPsychMav]

Some of it is the luxury of being completely healthy.
Wright and Brunson seem a bit redundant and getting in the way of each other. I like wright more though. That's what I meant with he lost his role. When wright comes of the bench brunson stinks it up. He still has to learn to play off the ball and be a secondary playmaker. Wright is simply better.

---

They should try starting Hardaway Jr

[Fuerza1]

He barely plays iso ball; you can even look up the statistic on NBA dot com, Brunson doesn't even qualify because that's how little he does it so not sure what y'all are seeing.

Outside of one game (I think POR?), his shot selection has not been bad at all imo. I would say his rim attacking has been a breath of fresh air on a team jacking up a lot of outside shots. 

The problem is that he is not making his field goals, FT's included. The solution will be time. Only 5 games thus far with 77 to go; some players start off badly then turn it around or vice versa. We'll see how it goes.

But I will say Carlisle is not doing him any favors. It is hard to be consistent and develop when you have no defined role. He should be playing more than 15 mins/game, no excuses. This is why people give Carlisle a hard time because he rather play chucker THJ more or 29 year old Seth who has already peaked as a bench player. 

Justin Jackson has a great game in DEN where he doesn't miss a shot but only plays 2 mins last night? Meanwhile, the lineup that gave up our comfortable lead early in the 3Q, is the same one Carlisle chooses to close the game and we all know what happened next.

[Scott41theMavs]

He barely plays iso ball; you can even look up the statistic on NBA dot com, Brunson doesn't even qualify because that's how little he does it so not sure what y'all are seeing.

Outside of one game (I think POR?), his shot selection has not been bad at all imo. I would say his rim attacking has been a breath of fresh air on a team jacking up a lot of outside shots. 

The problem is that he is not making his field goals, FT's included. The solution will be time. Only 5 games thus far with 77 to go; some players start off badly then turn it around or vice versa. We'll see how it goes.

But I will say Carlisle is not doing him any favors. It is hard to be consistent and develop when you have no defined role. He should be playing more than 15 mins/game, no excuses. This is why people give Carlisle a hard time because he rather play chucker THJ more or 29 year old Seth who has already peaked as a bench player. 

Justin Jackson has a great game in DEN where he doesn't miss a shot but only plays 2 mins last night? Meanwhile, the lineup that gave up our comfortable lead early in the 3Q, is the same one Carlisle chooses to close the game and we all know what happened next.

I know I gave Bartlettbear a hard time in the Powell minutes thread, but I have to admit that Carlisle was atrocious, absolutely horrendous, in his rotations, especially in the second half. Needed more Justin, Maxi, and Wright. With KP's struggles, Wright is our second best player, no shock value. He needs minutes.

[SportPsychMav]

The thing is that Brunson just flat out looks lost because he has no clear role to play. He doesn't know his place yet. Same goes for most of the Mavs though. Only Luka and Kleber and somewhat Wright and Finney Smith look comfortable in their roles yet.

Luka needs to play some off ball in order to get the other guards going. He cannot handle the ball 37 minutes per night. Brunson is a lead guard same as jjBarea and Delon wright.

They don't know how to play a flow offense yet with lots of ball movement. 

Actually the first quarter against Portland was excellent with many secondary assists. That's how they are supposed to play. 

Many times especially in the 3nd halves the games became super stagnant and the offense dropped because players started to do their thing.

Brunson flat out forces his shots more often than not, same as Hardaway Jr.

[Fuerza1]

The thing is that Brunson just flat out looks lost because he has no clear role to play. He doesn't know his place yet. Same goes for most of the Mavs though. Only Luka and Kleber and somewhat Wright and Finney Smith look comfortable in their roles yet.

Luka needs to play some off ball in order to get the other guards going. He cannot handle the ball 37 minutes per night. Brunson is a lead guard same as jjBarea and Delon wright.

They don't know how to play a flow offense yet with lots of ball movement. 

Actually the first quarter against Portland was excellent with many secondary assists. That's how they are supposed to play. 

Many times especially in the 3nd halves the games became super stagnant and the offense dropped because players started to do their thing.

Brunson flat out forces his shots more often than not, same as Hardaway Jr.

If you believe Brunson and THJ are forcing their shots then the same applies to Luka and KP, especially the former. Luka almost cost us the game in DEN and did cost us the game vs POR with his hero ball antics.

You already alluded to the problem, there is little to no ball movement. It becomes contagious and it starts at the top, which also includes Carlisle.

Luka has more touches and time of possession than anybody in the NBA by a country mile. He is 7th in isolation frequency. He is simply doing too much and it's icing out other guys like Brunson, Seth, etc. I cannot further emphasize the importance of preserving Luka's energy tank for a potential playoff push. At this current rate, he will burn out by midseason; he definitely needs to play more off ball. 

The offense becomes way too predictable, especially in crunch time, and it will get even more exposed the more it lingers. No idea if it is all by design via Carlisle or the head coach is helpless and defers to his stars. We're good now but we could be much better, which is what it's gonna take if we want to beat playoff caliber teams more consistently.

[j0Shi]

Not concerned. I like most stuff he's doing, and he should be a plus on most nights.

[audiosway]

He doesn't know his place yet. Same goes for most of the Mavs though.
They don't know how to play a flow offense yet with lots of ball movement. 

This is what I love the most about this team. They are this good and haven't even figured it out yet. They will be absolutely dominant once they do. Donnie has put together a beast of a team and now it's Rick's job to coach them up.  Once they gel and know their roles this is going to be a fun team to watch.

[SportPsychMav]

Brunson is only shooting 36% from the field on 8 shot attempts while shooting 50% free throws.
In the two losses he shot 16% from the field with only 2 assists. In wins he had much more success.

Only other player shooting around 36% from the field is Hardaway Jr.. both guys were highlighted with bad shot selection. If they actually passed more often than not good things happened.

On a side note:
Dallas has 7 roleplayers averaging about 8ppg and around 22 min per game.

[StepBackJay]

Not concerned. I like most stuff he's doing, and he should be a plus on most nights.

Agreed. I think he's been good. Missed some shots last night but Mavs missed a lot of shots including a bunch of bunnies around the rim. Brunsons minutes in the rotation are really weird to me. Eventually this will all get worked out.

[fifteenth]

2 games ago we were singing his praises

[Kammrath]

2 games ago we were singing his praises

[bartlettbear]

The thing is that Brunson just flat out looks lost because he has no clear role to play. He doesn't know his place yet. Same goes for most of the Mavs though. Only Luka and Kleber and somewhat Wright and Finney Smith look comfortable in their roles yet.

Luka needs to play some off ball in order to get the other guards going. He cannot handle the ball 37 minutes per night. Brunson is a lead guard same as jjBarea and Delon wright.

They don't know how to play a flow offense yet with lots of ball movement. 

Actually the first quarter against Portland was excellent with many secondary assists. That's how they are supposed to play. 

Many times especially in the 3nd halves the games became super stagnant and the offense dropped because players started to do their thing.

Brunson flat out forces his shots more often than not, same as Hardaway Jr.

If you believe Brunson and THJ are forcing their shots then the same applies to Luka and KP, especially the former. Luka almost cost us the game in DEN and did cost us the game vs POR with his hero ball antics.

You already alluded to the problem, there is little to no ball movement. It becomes contagious and it starts at the top, which also includes Carlisle.

Luka has more touches and time of possession than anybody in the NBA by a country mile. He is 7th in isolation frequency. He is simply doing too much and it's icing out other guys like Brunson, Seth, etc. I cannot further emphasize the importance of preserving Luka's energy tank for a potential playoff push. At this current rate, he will burn out by midseason; he definitely needs to play more off ball. 

The offense becomes way too predictable, especially in crunch time, and it will get even more exposed the more it lingers. No idea if it is all by design via Carlisle or the head coach is helpless and defers to his stars. We're good now but we could be much better, which is what it's gonna take if we want to beat playoff caliber teams more consistently.

No because both Luka and KP can shoot over almost all defenders  thus their shots are not forced while Brunson does his , reverse pivot move in the paint that all Nova players do but does not work at this level and then he shoots a fade away jumper.

[TheCustodian]

Brunson plays like a vet and seems to have a good head around the game. Due to that, it seems that we forget his age. He is entering his sophomore season. A lot of great players in the past have fallen victim to the sophomore slump. I don't think its anything to be concerned about. He'll get it together over time. Basketball is a game of highs and lows, you can't be good all the time. Just look at the Denver game. Our two best players had off nights. Is it possible for someone like Luka, the godchild that we praise 24/7, to have an off night or a string of off nights? If it happens to him, it can happen to Brunson. I don't see any issue.

[SportPsychMav]

Brunson plays like a vet and seems to have a good head around the game. Due to that, it seems that we forget his age. He is entering his sophomore season. A lot of great players in the past have fallen victim to the sophomore slump. I don't think its anything to be concerned about. He'll get it together over time. Basketball is a game of highs and lows, you can't be good all the time. Just look at the Denver game. Our two best players had off nights. Is it possible for someone like Luka, the godchild that we praise 24/7, to have an off night or a string of off nights? If it happens to him, it can happen to Brunson. I don't see any issue.

Luka isn't praised 24/7

We already mentioned he should play more off ball. 
Plus Luka as well is criticized for taking I'll advised shots same as Porzingis.

First we describe a phenomenon and then we think about reasons behind and how to fix it.
That's a discussion I like at least.

Some people prefer hot takes and emotional fandom. That's ok but it will always mix and clinch with more reasonable takes.

In the end we do not have influence on what happens on the court. 

Maybe we need to introduce some tags for posts/threads to show they are casual or more analytical and serious.

We have totally different mindsets clashing here most of the time. It's only natural. It is relatively loosely moderated. We are still growing. 

I appreciate all of your takes, but thank god we don't have to agree and still can be friends.

[Fuerza1]

No because both Luka and KP can shoot over almost all defenders  thus their shots are not forced while Brunson does his , reverse pivot move in the paint that all Nova players do but does not work at this level and then he shoots a fade away jumper.

Clearly, you have a different interpretation of what a forced shot is or isn't so I'm not going to get into that (lol). 

On the Nova special pivot play you're talking about, Brunson is 2/2 on the season; 2/3 on fadeaways overall. Either way, this play type is an insignificant part of his game but you're blowing it out of proportion. 

Where he is struggling is his jump shot, where he's shooting 24% thus far. But it's only 5 games, I think we all expect that number to increase exponentially by season's end.

55% of Brunson's shots are open looks and he's shooting below 30% in that department. He is actually doing a lot better versus tight defense, where he's shooting 53%. Brunson's shot selection has been fine, it just comes down to making them more consistently; it's not rocket science. 

Miss more = Brunson sucks, forcing shots, etc.; make more = Brunson's a key part of Mavs' future.

Furthermore, Brunson hasn't even been taking many shots the last 3 games. Everybody except Powell, Boban, and JJax have shot more than him. His touches have gone from 67 and 44 in the first two games to 23, 31, and 27 the last three games. But for some odd reason, his shots seem to stand out more than other meh shooters like Kleber, DFS, etc.

[SportPsychMav]

No because both Luka and KP can shoot over almost all defenders  thus their shots are not forced while Brunson does his , reverse pivot move in the paint that all Nova players do but does not work at this level and then he shoots a fade away jumper.

Clearly, you have a different interpretation of what a forced shot is or isn't so I'm not going to get into that (lol). 

On the Nova special pivot play you're talking about, Brunson is 2/2 on the season; 2/3 on fadeaways overall. Either way, this play type is an insignificant part of his game but you're blowing it out of proportion. 

Where he is struggling is his jump shot, where he's shooting 24% thus far. But it's only 5 games, I think we all expect that number to increase exponentially by season's end.

55% of Brunson's shots are open looks and he's shooting below 30% in that department. He is actually doing a lot better versus tight defense, where he's shooting 53%. Brunson's shot selection has been fine, it just comes down to making them more consistently; it's not rocket science. 

Miss more = Brunson sucks, forcing shots, etc.; make more = Brunson's a key part of Mavs' future.

Furthermore, Brunson hasn't even been taking many shots the last 3 games. Everybody except Powell, Boban, and JJax have shot more than him. His touches have gone from 67 and 44 in the first two games to 23, 31, and 27 the last three games. But for some odd reason, his shots seem to stand out more than other meh shooters like Kleber, DFS, etc.

Kleber and DFS take assisted shots within the flow of the game. Many of Brunson's shots and those from Hardaway Jr. don't come within the flow of the offense.

My takes are not really meant to criticize Brunson. It was just my observation that many shots of him felt forced.

My guess was that he is struggling with his role, not getting enough touches. That's not on him. That's a chemistry thing for me.

Luka definitely needs to play off ball some plays in order for  and both wright  and brunson to have good games.

Porzingis also takes lots of forced shots.

My favorite play of the Mavs was in the Portland game the first quarter where their ball movement and off the ball movement excelled!

When I try to point out things like this I do not try to judge the players ability or potential or demean the player. I just like to study what's going on.

And sorry that many of my posts are of such low quality. I struggle some posting coherently from my mobile.