The NBA playoffs are a harsh environment.
Exposure can lead to some surprising revelations about teams, players and coaches. These revelations are not always negative. Pressure makes diamonds, as the saying goes, and getting forced into unfamiliar situations with a team’s season on the line can create some remarkable outcomes. In recent history, Jalen Brunson feels like an excellent example of what a playoff run can reveal about a player, when he was forced into action as the Dallas Mavericks’ No. 1 option when Luka Doncic went down and shined so brightly he became the top target of free agency that offseason. A few years later, he’s a perennial MVP candidate and leader of the New York Knicks.
