Does Jalen Brunson re-sign with Dallas Mavericks if money is equal in free agency?

Case for Jalen Brunson signing with New York Knicks over Dallas Mavericks

The Knicks are the biggest threat to the Mavericks re-signing Jalen Brunson. President Leon Rose was JB’s agent before jumping into the front office, and he was his father Rick Brunson’s agent during his playing days. New York has been trying to acquire Jalen since Rose took over. They need a point guard, and the Knicks just hired Jalen’s father as an assistant coach.

Marc Stein noted the Mavericks are not worrying yet, but things would likely change if the Knicks created the cap space to sign Jalen Brunson outright. The 6’1 point guard has plenty of ties to the current Knicks, and they would be able to offer him the lead ball-handling and playmaking role in New York.

If the money is equal, Brunson would have a difficult decision to make. The Dallas Mavericks are in a better position to make a deep playoff run next season, but he would have to be the number two ball-handler at best. Would the opportunity to win outweigh the larger role? It would be a difficult decision for Jalen Brunson to make.

It is worth noting that the Knicks currently do not have the cap space to sign Brunson. They would need to move multiple pieces to get there, and convincing another team to eat money before free agency begins is often difficult.