Jalen Brunson clearly has performed at an All-Star level throughout his first two seasons with the Knicks, even while being snubbed for the honor one year ago.
But his increasingly stellar play of late only has elevated Brunson’s status as one of the top point guards in the NBA.
The $104 million bargain has netted at least 30 points in five consecutive games entering Thursday’s home matchup against the Nuggets, and he’s done so seven times in 10 appearances since OG Anunoby joined the Knicks’ lineup on Jan. 1 following a trade with the Raptors.
Brunson also missed two games with a calf injury during that stretch — a win over the Grizzlies and a loss to the Magic — but the Knicks have won 10 of 12 overall to improve to 10 games over .500 (27-17) for the first time this season.
Brunson and Julius Randle have netted at least 30 points apiece in five of the 10 games Brunson has played since the calendar flipped, most recently with both finishing with that exact number in Tuesday’s comeback win over the Nets in Brooklyn.
“I think we’re just locked in, playing the right way. It starts with me and J,” Randle said after the game. “We know we get a lot of attention, so we have to make the right plays.”
Brunson has averaged 29.0 points and 8.0 assists since Anunoby’s arrival, and his career-best 26.6 points per game overall this season ranked 12th in the league through Tuesday’s action.
Still, the NBA’s All-Star starters will be announced Thursday night, and Brunson’s incredible recent push might not be enough to land him one of the first two backcourt spots in the Eastern Conference.
If he’s not designated as a starter, Brunson still can be named to his first career All-Star appearance when the reserves are named next Thursday.
The coaches in each conference vote for the reserves, though they can’t pick their own players.
Brunson was sixth in the East among backcourt players in the most recent fan voting, which counts 50 percent toward the starting unit. The other 50 percent is split up between NBA players and select media members.
Randle has been named to the All-Star team in two of the previous three seasons, and he should be in consideration for a third with averages of 24.2 points, 9.3 rebounds and 5.0 assists.
Only MVP candidates Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic have also posted those numbers or better in those categories this season.
Still, if the Knicks only get one representative again this season, it’s hard to ignore Brunson, even with the stiff competition among guards in the East.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton (23.6 points, league-leading 12.6 assists) and Hawks guard Trae Young (26.9 points and 10.8 assists) were leading in the fan voting — although Haliburton has missed several games recently with a hamstring injury, and the Hawks entered Wednesday’s game at Golden State with an 18-25 record.
Damian Lillard (Bucks), Donovan Mitchell (Cavaliers) and Tyrese Maxey (76ers) also have strong cases for All-Star inclusion in the East, and they were the others ahead of Brunson in the fan voting.
And that doesn’t count fringe candidates such as Derrick White and Jrue Holiday of the Celtics and Cade Cunningham of the NBA-worst Pistons, although it’s hard to imagine Brunson being excluded for any of them.
On TNT’s studio show Tuesday night, analyst Candace Parker noted that she gave Mitchell “the nod over Brunson,” but Jamal Crawford and Shaquille O’Neal endorsed the Knicks’ point guard for a starting spot.
“For me, it’s Brunson’s consistency … I think he’s the clear-cut No. 1 option, an All-Star starter,” Crawford said.
“I chose Brunson. … He’s a bad mofo,” O’Neal added. “I haven’t seen a small guy do whatever he wants to do since [Allen] Iverson, so I like Brunson.”
Brunson and Knicks teammate Josh Hart also were named this week to the 41-man player pool for consideration for Team USA’s roster for the Olympics in Paris this summer after they participated in the FIBA World Cup last August.