Jalen Brunson is one of the NBA’s more electric scorers. He’s a guy who can take a game over on a whim and lead the New York Knicks to a big win on any given night. But for as special as Brunson can be, there are probably limitations on how far he can actually take the Knicks in the playoffs if he’s their focal point.
On Thursday, during an NBA Today discussion on ESPN, Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon shared an incisive take about Brunson’s ceiling. As the panel debated whether the slightly above-average Knicks are stuck in Purgatory, Hammon took it a step further. She proclaimed that New York lacks the true No. 1 superstar necessary to win a championship. When Kendrick Perkins pushed back and highlighted Brunson, Hammon explained that the 6-foot-2 guard is simply too short to be the fulcrum of a team that can win four consecutive best-of-seven series in a postseason.
Honestly, based on years of NBA history, Hammon isn’t wrong. At all:
Becky Hammon: [The Knicks] don't have a dude… you got to have a 1A dude."
Kendrick Perkins: "They do have that dude."
B: "Who?"
K: "Jalen Brunson."
B: "He too small. If your best player is small, you're not winning… Steph Curry is the only dude."pic.twitter.com/XWhJHZXpxT
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 21, 2023
At any point in the NBA’s history, almost every single championship team is built around someone with considerable size and length.
There are a few outliers, of course — namely, Steph Curry (the best shooter of all time), Isiah Thomas (arguably the finest pure point guard ever), Dwyane Wade (an arguably top-three shooting guard all time, who was also 6-foot-4), and Chauncey Billups (more a cog in a team system than an outright superstar) — but they are all exceptions. All of them.
There is also usually a stark cut-off in height for a true No. 1. We can probably use the 6-foot-6 Michael Jordan (who won six championships with the Chicago Bulls) as the bar. If your top player isn’t at least that height, you’re probably not winning it all in June. Recent history especially says as much.
Here’s the list of best players and their respective heights on the last 10 NBA champions:
- 2014 San Antonio Spurs, Kawhi Leonard (6-foot-7)
- 2015 Golden State Warriors, Steph Curry (6-foot-3)
- 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James (6-foot-8)
- 2017 Warriors, Kevin Durant (6-foot-10)
- 2018 Warriors, Kevin Durant (6-foot-10)
- 2019 Toronto Raptors, Kawhi Leonard (6-foot-7)
- 2020 Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James (6-foot-8)
- 2021 Milwaukee Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo (6-foot-11)
- 2022 Warriors, Steph Curry (6-foot-3)
- 2023 Denver Nuggets, Nikola Jokic (6-foot-11)
Again, you might counter with Curry, but he is literally the greatest three-point shooter in NBA history. At the time of this writing, Curry has made over 500 more threes than the next-best on the NBA’s all-time list.
Put another way: Curry is the outlier of outliers.
This isn’t to say that Brunson can’t win a title with the Knicks.
After all, 25-point scorers don’t just grow on trees. And history isn’t necessarily empirical. The modern NBA presents a different game and a different challenge. The league is more built than ever to allow smaller players to thrive. But when combining the current landscape of skyscraper stars with history, it’s abundantly clear that New York would be better off turning Brunson into a loyal sidekick for another alpha with more size. Jamal Murray in Denver is a perfect example of that reality in present terms.
Hammon knows what she’s talking about. Brunson is talented, but the Knicks still have a lot of work to do — maybe the hardest work in acquiring a No. 1 superstar — before they’re ready to compete for a championship.
This was how Twitter reacted to Hammon's take about Brunson's size on a title contender
She’s right! Brunson is awesome but he’s too small and it’s hard for guys that size to carry teams to titles. That said I think Brunson being a likable, competitive dude who drags the Knicks to a couple second rounds is a huge win for everyone. https://t.co/WRUQ75j5wa
— kang (@jaycaspiankang) December 21, 2023
She’s right
Zeke, Steph and Dywane Wade are once in a lifetime players
You can add Chauncey Billups winning finals MVP but I feel like that’s more of a committee backed by an all time defense https://t.co/RUpxmGGlIu
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) December 21, 2023
She’s right.
The list in the past 40 years of champion 1As is Curry, Isiah, Wade https://t.co/oqPBWDIczk
— Five Reasons Sports 🏀🏈⚾️🏒⚽️ (@5ReasonsSports) December 21, 2023
AI made it to the finals by himself with no help so it’s possible & he only 6’0 🤷🏽♂️ https://t.co/tGxA2rO0BY pic.twitter.com/v4nrmeJMYg
— Mikey (@outlawmikey) December 21, 2023
love how knicks fans are telling a literal basketball hall of famer that she doesn’t know what she’s saying https://t.co/0BiL66iDHl
— 43 Cent (@nasimali) December 21, 2023
The list of teams who have won championships with their best player being ≤ 6’ 3”:
Isiah Lord Thomas
The greatest shooter of all time https://t.co/m9q4h9kLQu— Shawn (with a W) (@shawnwithaW_) December 21, 2023
She cooked Kendrick and she isn’t wrong
Only Curry and Zeke have done it
Historically most 99% of small dudes playoff productions take a huge dip https://t.co/deXTC8nFcG
— Brandon (@BrandonJBranden) December 21, 2023
I don't appreciate Becky Hammon coming on NBA Today talking crazy about my squad and being absolutely right about it w/ historical facts to back it up. https://t.co/k9TdKTHhj3
— Dee Phunk (@DeePhunk) December 21, 2023
100% agree with Becky. Steph is the only player 6’3 or under to win a finals MVP in the last 15 years. History says if your best player isn’t a 6’6, 6’7 upwards dude you’re not winning https://t.co/UgtDbtWXUL
— Kofi (@biggierhymes_) December 21, 2023
