Knicks Guard in Top 10 for MVP Odds
New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson is coming off a successful second season with the franchise.
He followed up his regular season with a dominant, record-setting playoff run that established himself as one of the best players in the NBA.
DraftKings has listed Brunson with the seventh-best odds to claim next year's league MVP trophy at +1800.
Brunson is tied with recent NBA champion Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics for the same odds. However, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (+1200), Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (+650), Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (+600), Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (+550), Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (+370) and reigning MVP and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (+350) all have better odds than Brunson.
Brunson, who turns 28 in August, averaged 28.5 points per game while dishing out 6.7 assists per contest in 77 appearances for the Knicks this season. His efforts helped the Knicks win 50 games for the first time since the 2012-13 season and clinch the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Brunson ranked fifth in the MVP voting behind Antetokounmpo, Doncic, Gilgeous-Alexander and Jokic. All of the players above him are international, making Brunson the best U.S.-born player in the league this year.
Brunson's efforts continued into the playoffs where he put the Knicks on his back, winning the team's first round series against the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers. However, he was unable to lead his team to victory in the second round against the sixth-seeded Indiana Pacers.
Despite being up 2-0, Brunson's teammates started dropping like flies with injuries rampant in the locker room. In Game 7, Brunson also fell victim to the injury bug, fracturing his hand, which led to the Knicks' elimination.
Brunson is expected to make a full recovery this offseason and will look to bring the Knicks even further in the playoffs next spring. He's only entering his prime, so as long as he keeps going along the trajectory he's on, the Knicks will only get better.
And who knows? Maybe Brunson will snatch an MVP trophy along the way?
JEREMY BRENER
Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.