1. Jalen Marquis Brunson was born on August 31,1996 and is an American professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association.
60 Facts About Jalen Brunson
1. 2.
Jalen Brunson played college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats, earning national player of the year honors as a junior and winning two national championships.
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Jalen Brunson participated in the 2015 McDonald's All-American Boys Game, Jordan Brand Classic and Nike Hoop Summit.
4.
Jalen Brunson led Stevenson to the Illinois High School Association Class 4A championship.
5.
Jalen Brunson won Illinois Mr Basketball and earned the MVP of the 2015 FIBA Under-19 World Cup.
6.
Jalen Brunson set the NBA record for most three point shots made in a half without a miss and tied the NBA record for most three point shots made in a single-game without a miss.
7.
Jalen Brunson is the son of Rick and Sandra Brunson.
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Jalen Brunson's parents met at Temple University where Rick played for the basketball team and Sandra played volleyball.
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The family first settled in Cherry Hill, New Jersey but moved seven times before settling in Lincolnshire, Illinois in 2010 where Jalen Brunson played his high school career for Stevenson High School.
10.
On February 21,2014, junior Jalen Brunson scored 57 points in a double overtime victory over Lake Forest High School.
11.
Jalen Brunson was named Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Illinois as a junior.
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Jalen Brunson finished fourth in the 2014 Illinois Mr Basketball voting.
13.
At the time, Jalen Brunson was the number 3 ranked point guard in the class of 2015 and Thornton was the number 2 ranked point guard in the class of 2016 for the number 1 team in the country according to USA Today.
14.
Jalen Brunson was 9-for-15 from the field and 9-for-9 from the free throw line.
15.
Jalen Brunson was a first-team Parade All-American, as well as a third-team USA Today All-USA high school basketball team selection.
16.
In what was regarded as a weak point guard class, Jalen Brunson was the only point guard that was ranked in the top 25 players at the conclusion of the class of 2015's junior season.
17.
Jalen Brunson was a selection to the 20-man Bob Cousy Award preseason watchlist.
18.
In preseason top 100 player rankings Jalen Brunson was ranked 46 by ESPN and 41 by NBC Sports.
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Jalen Brunson was a selection to the 20-man Bob Cousy Award preseason watchlist again as a sophomore.
20.
Jalen Brunson was a preseason All-Big East honorable mention selection.
21.
Jalen Brunson was a pre-season All-American selection by Associated Press and ESPN.
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Jalen Brunson was a preseason John R Wooden Award, Oscar Robertson Trophy, Lute Olson Award and Naismith College Player of the Year watchlist honoree.
23.
Jalen Brunson led Villanova to the championship of the 2017 Battle 4 Atlantis, earning the MVP of the tournament and being recognized on November 27 as the Big East Player of the Week.
24.
Jalen Brunson was named as an Academic All-District selection, making him one of 40 finalists for the 15-man Academic All-America team.
25.
Jalen Brunson was named as one of 10 semi-finalists for the Naismith Award.
26.
Jalen Brunson was named as one of 20 late-season finalists for the Wooden Award.
27.
Jalen Brunson was a consensus first-team All-American after being selected as a first-team All-American by Sporting News, USBWA, Associated Press, and NABC.
28.
Jalen Brunson was awarded the USBWA Oscar Robertson Trophy the Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year, the Naismith College Player of the Year, the John R Wooden Award, the NABC Player of the Year, CBS Sports National Player of the Year, the Bob Cousy Award, and Sporting News Player of the Year.
29.
Jalen Brunson was named Most Outstanding Player of the East Region and was joined on the East Region All-tournament team by Omari Spellman and Eric Paschall.
30.
On December 17,2019, Jalen Brunson was named college basketball player of the decade by Sporting News.
31.
Jalen Brunson was the fourth and final Villanova player to be selected in the 2018 NBA draft.
32.
Jalen Brunson did not sign until after he completed his 2018 NBA Summer League play and was accorded a 4-year contract similar to a first round selection with 3-years guaranteed.
33.
That same night, with JJ Barea and Devin Harris sidelined, Jalen Brunson posted 13 points, a career-high 11 rebounds, and what was then a career-high eight assists against the Philadelphia 76ers for his first professional double-double.
34.
On March 13,2020, Jalen Brunson was reported to have undergone surgery to fix a labrum injury in his right shoulder.
35.
Jalen Brunson's breakout continued in the playoffs, where he led the Mavericks, who were without Luka Doncic for the first three games against the Utah Jazz.
36.
On July 12,2022, Jalen Brunson signed a four-year, $104 million contract with the New York Knicks.
37.
Jalen Brunson joined Walt Frazier and Patrick Ewing as the only players in Knicks history to put up at least 30 points and 10 assists in a playoff game.
38.
Jalen Brunson tied the record for the most 40-point games by a point guard in Knicks history.
39.
Jalen Brunson became the ninth player to score 50 points as a Knick.
40.
Jalen Brunson was the sixth player and first since Anthony Davis to record 50 points, five assists, five steals on October 16,2016, as well as the first player since Michael Jordan on March 18,1988, to record at least 50 points, nine assists, five rebounds and five steals.
41.
On January 1,2024, in new teammate OG Anunoby's debut with the Knicks, Jalen Brunson posted a career-high 14 assists against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
42.
Later in the month, Jalen Brunson posted five consecutive 30-point games.
43.
On February 1, Jalen Brunson was named as reserve for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game for the first time in his career.
44.
Jalen Brunson averaged 28.8 points and 5.8 assists per game during the month.
45.
Jalen Brunson finished 5th in the NBA Most Valuable Player Award voting and was named to the All-NBA Second Team for the first time in his career.
46.
Jalen Brunson became the first Knick with consecutive 30-point assist-points playoff double-doubles and his 24-point second half established the Knick career record with seven 20+-point playoff halves.
47.
Jalen Brunson became the first player to close out an NBA playoff series with 3 consecutive 40+-point games since Michael Jordan did so with The Shot in the 1989 NBA playoffs.
48.
Jalen Brunson opened the second round of the playoffs against the Indiana Pacers with 43 points and 6 assists, becoming the 4th player in NBA history and first since Jordan in the 1993 NBA Finals to score 40+ in four consecutive playoff games and the first ever to do so with 5+ assists in each of the four playoff games.
49.
On January 25,2025, Jalen Brunson was named as an Eastern Conference starter for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game.
50.
Jalen Brunson is known for having elite footwork, but not elite athleticism.
51.
Jalen Brunson led the Midwest team to a third-place finish in the eight-team tournament.
52.
On June 18,2015, Jalen Brunson was announced as a member of the 12-man 2015 USA Basketball Men's U19 World Cup Team for the 2015 FIBA Under-19 World Cup.
53.
Jalen Brunson earned MVP of the tournament, after leading the team with 5.6 assists and 2.1 steals for the tournament.
54.
Jalen Brunson posted a game-high 30 points in the semi-finals against Greece, and he tallied a team-high 14 points including six in overtime as well as seven assists, five rebounds and a steal in the gold medal game against Croatia.
55.
Jalen Brunson tied teammate Harry Giles, with a 14.0 average for the tournament.
56.
Jalen Brunson was one of the first commitments to Team USA for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, according to a June 4,2023, tweet from Marc Stein, that was referenced by CBS Sports.
57.
On September 21,2022, Jalen Brunson announced his engagement to longtime girlfriend Ali Marks, whom he met in high school.
58.
On July 29,2023, Jalen Brunson wed Marks at The Ritz-Carlton Chicago with current and former teammates in attendance.
59.
Jalen Brunson is close friends with New York Knicks teammate Josh Hart, a former teammate at Villanova and both run a podcast called Roommates together.
60.
On June 28,2024, Jalen Brunson appeared in WWE SmackDown at Madison Square Garden, alongside Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton.