Phil Booth, Jalen Brunson, Villanova
When Jalen Brunson arrived on the Main Line this season for his much-anticipated first year at Villanova, he hit campus with quite an array of basketball accomplishments.
Ranked a five-star recruit by ESPN, Rivals.com and Scout.com, the 6-2 ½ Brunson was also anointed as the nation’s top point guard coming out of Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Ill. And during his storied career at Stevenson, Brunson managed to snag a pair of Gatorade Player of the Year awards in both 2014 and 2015 and was voted Illinois Mr. Basketball last season after leading Stevenson to its first state title when he set records for most points in a playoff game (56) and most in a championship game (30).
Oh yeah, then he spent his summer earning MVP honors while playing in the FIBA Under-19 World Championships for gold-medal winning Team USA. And did we mention that before choosing to spend his college years as a Wildcat, he had to whittle down a list of impressive suitors which included Purdue, Illinois, Kansas, UConn, Michigan State, Michigan and Temple? The BIG EAST coaches made him the Preseason Freshman of the Year.
So what kind of impression did this basketball prodigy make upon his arrival at Nova?
“He just fit in like one of the guys,” teammate Josh Hart said. “He’s definitely far along for the typical freshman. But he has a really good basketball IQ and he had a willingness to come in and totally buy in to what we’re teaching him.”
Brunson didn’t wait long to start showcasing his wares as the season tipped off. In his first collegiate game vs. Fairleigh Dickinson, Brunson scored 12 points and handed out four assists. In each of his next three games – against Nebraska, East Tennessee State and Akron, all Villanova victories – Brunson logged nine points in each contest. But it was in his breakout performances in the NIT Season Tipoff semifinals and championship game that folks outside of Philly got to see the much-hyped freshman for the first time and he proceeded to light up Stanford for 18 points in the semis before scoring 13 in the title game victory over Georgia Tech that landed the Wildcats the NIT crown and Brunson MVP honors.
But Brunson is quick to deflect any personal achievements.
“It’s definitely a team thing,” said Brunson, the son of former Temple star and NBA player Rick Brunson. “Coach (Jay) Wright and the coaching staff and all my teammates put me in the right positions to be successful. I just try to make the right reads at the right times. It’s really a credit to them.”
Considering the bulging resume Brunson arrived with at Villanova, his teammates are not entirely surprised at what he has accomplished so far in the young season.
“I wouldn’t say he surprised me just because it’s just something we’ve all seen in the preseason and when we’re working before games and when we’re practicing, I see the potential,” said Hart, the Wildcats junior guard. “I see the ability he has to positively impact games. So it doesn’t really surprise me that he’s off to such a good start. But it’s really good to see all of his hard work paying off in a positive way.”
Wright knows a thing or two about coaching premier guards during his tenure at Nova – think Randy Foye, Allan Ray, Scottie Reynolds, Kyle Lowry, Ryan Arcidiacono to name but a few – and he thinks he has something special this season in Brunson.
“I’ve said this before. He’s a combination of Ryan Arcidiacono and Kyle Lowry,” Wright said. “He’s got some of what both of them have. Now Kyle does some things better and Ryan does some things better but (Jalen) got two things - the basketball IQ of Kyle, and I don’t think people give him enough credit. He’s probably the smartest player I’ve ever coached. And he’s got the mental toughness and the maturity of Ryan Arcidiacono.”
But despite all he accomplished before arriving at Villanova, and the hot start to open the season, Hart thinks the Wildcat veterans will still have a hand in molding the budding star.
“He can’t get complacent and that’s something that me and the other upperclassmen, Ryan (Arcidiacono), Daniel (Ochefu), Kris (Jenkins) and Darryl (Reynolds) will have to really push on him,” Hart said. “It will be tough love now but it’s something that we have to do. We have to push him to make him better, to make him the best player he can be and make us the best team we can be. So it’s not surprising at all to see him having such a good season so far. But he has to keep getting better and that’s the biggest part.”
And Brunson for his part is all about absorbing whatever he can from coaches, teammates or anyone else he can learn from.
“It’s been a great learning experience from Ryan and all the guys that have been here before me like Josh and Kris,” Brunson said. “Everyone is teaching me in some way. And just knowing coach’s reputation with guards is really good. I just wanted to come here and be coached. I’m open to coaching and open to getting better.”
Which is something Hart and the rest of the Wildcats are looking forward to this season.
“He has a lot of room to grow and that’s the scary part for other teams, that he is doing this well and he still has a lot of things he can get better at,” Hart said.
The No. 12 Wildcats are off to an 8-1 start after their latest victory, a 76-47 win over LaSalle in which Brunson, who is averaging 10.8 points while placing second on the team with 31 assists, scored 13 points and dished four assists. And with about three months left in the season before tournament time comes a’ calling, Brunson sounds like a man happy with his college choice and what he can bring to this Villanova team.
“I think I bring a little bit of leadership, just from being a point guard trying to lead the team,” Brunson said. “But at the same time I just try to let them know I’m all in all the time. I just want to be part of the Villanova family and a part of something special.”