The Ringer’s Bill Simmons believes Knicks star Jalen Brunson has taken over from James Harden as the NBA’s biggest flopper.
“I think he’s become the pre-eminent flopper in the NBA,” Simmons said on “The Bill Simmons Podcast” on February 24. “It’s just a whole bunch of things, he’s doing it on both defense and offense. By the way, kudos to him, because it’s working.”
“But I think Harden is getting older, right? Maybe his best flopping days were in the 2018-19 range. Trae Young was there for a second but I think some of the rule-changes have gotten to his head.”
“Brunson is on the top of the game,” Simmons continued. “He’s flopping on picks, he’s flopping coming off screens when someone bumps into him on a drive. He’s flopping for charges. I think he’s the complete package, it’s some of the best flopping I’ve ever seen.”
Brunson Enjoying Productive Year
The flopping criticism notwithstanding, Brunson has produced arguably the best season of his young career in 2024-25. While his points per game are down from last season — 28.7 to 26.0 — the dip was expected given the arrival of co-star Karl-Anthony Towns.
Brunson has made significant strides in other aspects of his game such as playmaking and catch-and-shooting. The southpaw is averaging a career-high 7.4 assists at a career-best efficient field goal percentage of .544. He has also admirably taken a backseat to allow Towns and Mikal Bridges — the two high-profile offseason acquisitions — to thrive in a Knicks uniform.
The 28-year-old has also proved to be a leader for a star-studded Knicks team. After the humiliating loss to the Celtics on February 23, Brunson delivered encouraging words to uplift the morale of his teammates.
“I think there’s always going be a lot of times where there’s a lot of voices,” Brunson said of the detractors, via Sports Illustrated.
Praised For His Leadership
“It’s a matter of when and where… I think for me, it’s just knowing when to say something. Making sure I’m saying it early and often. I’ve gotta be better at that aspect… It falls on my shoulders and I’m ok with that. I gotta be ready to step up and lead and be better.”
Others have praised Brunson’s ability to lead the Knicks back to relevancy for the first time since the 1990s. In 2023-24, Brunson led New York to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-13 season.
Knicks legend Clyde Frazier compared Brunson to former Knicks captain Willis Reed, with whom he won two NBA championships in 1970 and 1973.
“Brunson reminds me a lot of [Reed],” Frazier said on January 12. “Tenacious work ethic, team-oriented, always sharing and caring.”
Even NBA commissioner Adam Silver believes Brunson is the leader a franchise like the Knicks deserves.
“Compliments to the Knicks and Jalen for creating an environment that he wanted to be in,” Silver told Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. “If he continues to play at the level he is, he’ll make an enormous amount of money, which is wonderful.
“But I think what he did with his contract is consistent with the way he leads on the floor. I think he made it clear to his teammates that he cares about them as well and he also realizes that in order to compete for championships, he needs great players around him.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Knicks Star Called Biggest ‘Flopper in NBA’ By Popular Analyst appeared first on Heavy Sports.