Candace Parker Made Up a Postseason Narrative For Jalen Brunson
The New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets met on Tuesday to kick off NBA Rivalry Week. Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle each scored 30 as the Knicks won, 108-103. The game was broadcast on TNT so Candace Parker, Shaquille O'Neal and Jamal Crawford were in studio with Adam Lefkoe to discuss the action. While previewing the game, Candace Parker took the opportunity to question Jalen Brunson's ability to perform in the postseason and completely got her facts mixed up.
Candace Parker questions Jalen Brunson's playoff performances, saying he did a good job in the first round last year, but not the second.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 24, 2024
2023 First Round: 24 PPG, 4.8 APG, 4.2 RPG
2023 Second Round: 31 PPG, 6.3 APG, 5.5 RPG pic.twitter.com/rFFRBHySro
"We've seen Jalen Brunson in the playoffs with the Mavs. And he was number two, number three, came in, played minutes, supplemented Luka handling the ball. But as a number one option, last year in the playoffs, great first round. Second round, not so much."
As you can see in that tweet, that is not true. Bruson was tremendous in the 2023 postseason and appears to be in his prime. He's averaging career-highs in just about everything this season, including points (12th in the league with 26.6 PPG) and three-point shooting (42.3 percent on 6-plus attempts per game).
This is a rare misstep for Parker, who is generally excellent on Turner broadcasts. Unfortunately, when you drop a hot take like this and confidently back it up with inaccurate claims, it must be noted. This is the kind of lazy narrative we'd expect from Charles Barkley or Shaq, who proudly don't pay attention to games they aren't being paid to watch. To hear it come from Parker is kind of surprising.
The Knicks may never win a title with Brunson, but he certainly hasn't given anyone a reason to think he'll be the reason they come up short.