Candace Parker faced significant criticism last month after expressing disapproval towards Jalen Brunson in a way that didn’t make sense. After weeks of backlash, the WNBA star is now attempting to defend herself without fully retracting her statements.
During TNT’s pregame show prior to the January game between the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets, Parker brought up Brunson’s performance in last year’s playoffs.
“When the pace of the game slows down in the playoffs, and you encounter difficulties, we’ve witnessed Jalen Brunson in the playoffs with the , and he was ranked second or third, came in, played minutes, supported Luka’s ball-handling. However, as the primary option last year in the playoffs, he had a great first round, but didn’t perform as well in the second round,” Parker stated.
This analysis and opinion would be valid, but only if it were accurate.
Brunson was exceptional during the Knicks’ first-round sweep against the Cleveland Cavaliers. While New York struggled against the Miami Heat in the second round, Brunson actually improved in several crucial statistics.
Parker’s suggestion that Brunson disappeared against Miami is simply incorrect.
Fast-forward to this week, and Parker acknowledged the negative response she has received while attempting to clarify her intended message.
“First and foremost, I have great respect for Knicks fans… and I understand,” Parker said on Tuesday, as reported by the New York Post. “What I was implying was that in the first round of the playoffs, he was the most outstanding player on the court compared to Donovan Mitchell. He was the best player on the court.
“And in the second round, especially defensively, Miami targeted him significantly. Jimmy Butler was, indeed, the best player on the court.”
While Butler performed well against the Knicks, if we solely examine player statistics from the Knicks-Heat series, Brunson outperformed Butler.
Butler averaged 24.6 points, 6.0 assists, and 7.2 rebounds in the five-game series, whereas Brunson averaged 31.0 points, 6.3 assists, and 5.5 rebounds.
Offensive statistics alone do not provide a complete picture, but for Parker to confidently assert that Butler was the superior player during Miami’s victory over New York is audacious. One could argue in favor of Brunson based solely on his offensive numbers.
Parker should perhaps take a few moments to conduct research before making bold statements in front of a microphone.
Mark covers all major sports while closely monitoring the world of golf. He obtained a degree in journalism and online media from the University of Tennessee, but you can form your own opinion on that matter. When he isn’t working, there’s a high probability that he’s on the golf course.
According to the Source outkick.com