Can you believe it? The team boss didn't play a game in the playoffs and can still lead 2-1! This team is the Lone Ranger. Doncic has missed three consecutive playoff games, and the Mavericks are currently 2-1 ahead of the Jazz! How important is Doncic to the Lone Ranger? He has 37.4 percent possession of regular season rounds, the league's number one. Embiid second, Alphabet Brother third.
Round percentage is a measure of how much a team's offense ends up in the hands of a player, including shots, free throws, and turnovers. The higher the ratio, the more important the player is to the team's offense. The Lone Ranger can't do without Doncic! Unexpectedly, he was injured in his left calf in the closing battle. The latest news says Doncic plans a G4 comeback.
Doncic hasn't played in three consecutive games, how did the Mavericks get a 2-1 lead over the Jazz? One player must be thanked: Jalen Brunson. In the first three games of the series, Brunson exploded with 96 points, 16 rebounds and 15 assists. He became the second player in Doncic's history to score 95+15+15 in three playoff games.
Take a look at Brunson's performance in these three games: G1 played 41 minutes, 9 of 24 shots, 1 of 3 three-pointers, 5 of 6 free throws for 24 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists; G2 played 42 minutes, 15 of 25 shots, 6 of 10 of 3 points, 6 of 7 of 3 points, 5 of 7 points and had 41 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists; G3 played 35 minutes, 12 of 22 shots, 0 of 4 three-point shooting, 7 of 7 of 7 for 31 points, 1 rebound and 5 assists.
The Brunson Series averaged 32 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5 assists and 0.7 steals per game, shooting 50.7 percent from the field, 41.2 percent from three-point range and 85 percent from the free throw line, close to "180 clubs." Can such a performance be called Doncic's strongest helper? The first three games of the series were tough battles, with one with an 8-point difference and the other two with only 6 points!
Looking at Mitchell on the other side, he averaged 32.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game in the series, shooting 41.2 percent from the field, 25 percent from three-point range, and 92.9 percent from the free throw line. Compared to Brunson, Mitchell scored less efficiently. In these three games, Brunson had only 3 turnovers and Mitchell had 6 turnovers.
Look at the two men's salary comparison this season: Brunson $1.8 million, Mitchell $28.1 million. Brunson's current contract is 6.11 million for 4 years, which expires this summer. Before the playoffs began, Barkley said publicly on the show: "Without Doncic, the Lone Ranger is hard to win!" "It turns out that Buckley is indeed poisonous milk!"
How big a contract does the Lone Ranger offer to keep Brunson this offseason? In January, there were media reports that Brunson would seek a big contract of $80 million for four years. In the regular season, Brunson played in 79 games, averaging 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 0.8 steals per game, shooting 50.2%, 37.3% and 84% of the three shooting rates.
After playing this year's playoffs, even if the Lone Rangers are reluctant to offer 80 million contracts, there are other teams willing to give Brunson. According to journalist Marc Stein, the Pacers, Pistons and Knicks will all chase Brunson this summer. Big contract and sister he wants, this 26-year-old guy is also going to become a winner in life...
In the 2018 Draft, the Lone Ranger picked up Doncic with the 3rd pick in the first round and Brunson with the 3rd pick in the second round. Some fans joked: in the same draft, the lone ranger chose "two fathers"!
Brunson's college highlights, how big contract do you think he can get?