One more thought on Brunson's value: I think (like VanVleet) his value exceeds his own personal stats because he strikes me as a player who can coalesce a group into a team. VanVleet has great +/- for the same reason that the Raptors' bench crew is the best in the NBA. So in getting Brunson, I'm arguing, a team will improve players they already have. Play him with players like Baldwin and Connaughton and I think their best traits will be emphasized and their weaknesses diminished.
Because nothing screams NBA CHAMPIONSHIP MVP like getting good grades in school. As for our culture, he was raised by Rick Brunson: http://www.chicagotribune.com/subur...unson-bulls-trial-tl-0604-20150529-story.html A Lake County judge on Friday acquitted former Chicago Bull Rick Brunson of charges he sexually abused a masseuse in Vernon Hills. The one-time Bulls player and assistant coach testified that the April 2, 2014, incident that led to the charges was a consensual act and part of an ongoing extramarital relationship. Furthermore, Brunson's attorneys claimed the woman was in financial trouble and had asked the former NBA player for money two weeks before the alleged incident at Lifetime Fitness. Brunson, 42, of Vernon Hills, was acquitted on the sexual abuse charge and all other charges, including attempted sexual assault, battery and domestic battery. "It is the state's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, and considering all the physical evidence and testimony, I must conclude that the state did not prove that guilt convincingly," Judge James Booras said. Vernon Hills police arrested Brunson after investigating claims that he grabbed the woman's arm, tried to force her to perform a sex act and pulled her shirt down. Police reports and early testimony show that Brunson received six massages from the woman beginning in December 2011. The masseuse told police that she had asked Brunson in September 2013 not to request her for massages anymore. When Brunson took the stand, he testified it was the woman who first expressed sexual interest on April 2, 2014. He denied grabbing the woman's arm or touching her chest, and said the two had similar experiences in the massage room during several other visits. Dennis Berkson, one of Brunson's attorneys, questioned why the masseuse did not use a landline phone that he said was on her desk in the massage room. "At no point did she call the police," Berkson said. "She then spent the next 28 minutes as calm as can be (texting) on a mobile phone, of which none were sent to police." Another employee at Lifetime testified that her coworker shared stories about having sexual encounters with Brunson while at the fitness center. Prosecutors later tried to discredit that witness by showing evidence that she never told police or a private investigator about those stories. Both Brunson and the woman testified that they first met at a restaurant in Lincolnshire in 2010 and began a sexual relationship at her house before Brunson began booking appointments at Lifetime. In his opening statement, Assistant State's Attorney Jason Grindel said the relationship between Brunson and the woman had ended seven months before the April 2, 2014 encounter, and that Brunson knowingly eluded standard procedure at the Lifetime Fitness center in order to reach the woman. "It doesn't matter who you are or what you do in life, no means no," Gindel said. "It also doesn't matter if someone gave consent in the past. When someone says no, it means no." Grindel pointed to evidence that Brunson booked his April 2, 2014, appointment under the name "Patrick Ewing," a former NBA star with the New York Knicks. He also said neither Brunson nor "Patrick Ewing" was actually checked in at the fitness club's front desk, but yet Brunson had found his way into the spa's waiting room, which is located beyond the front desk. "I've never gone to the massage desk," Brunson countered on the stand. "I always call ahead and then go directly to the waiting room. They know who I am." Brunson later said he began booking under fake names when he started using multiple masseuses, claiming the staff was territorial about clients because their pay was linked to the number of people they served. He always paid with his credit card, he said, noting the card was registered under his real name. Furthermore, Brunson said he was never told to stay away from the fitness center. He also denied claims that he and the woman were friends or had an emotional relationship. "I'm married. I was not in a relationship with her," Brunson insisted. "It was a bad decision to have sex with that woman. I was doing something I shouldn't have been doing, so obviously I'm not going to talk about my wife and kids with her." When she took the stand, the woman admitted to having sexual encounters with Brunson four times in the three years they'd known each other, but said she did not tell anyone at Lifetime about the private activities, and making a scene over his surprise visit that day could have jeopardized her job. It was after an incident-free, hour-long massage that Brunson became aggressive, the woman said. She testified that he grabbed her by the arm when she began to leave. "I said 'Nothing is going to happen, you need to get out of here now,'" she said. She also said he pulled her toward him and then grabbed her by the hair. "He said, 'I know you like it when I pull your hair.'" "I closed my eyes and kept them closed," she continued, wiping away tears and looking at the ceiling. "I just wanted to get out of there. I kept wishing I could be somewhere else." Asked why she didn't call police, the woman said she was too dazed to know what to do, and then again explained how her bosses didn't know about the private relationship. "It would be convenient if the victims of sex crimes can anticipate attacks and know what to do," Assistant State's Attorney Frederick Day said in a closing statement. "These types of crimes are not always done in a dark alley and committed by a stranger. In this case, he knew her very well. She was torn and confused." The woman admitted to having filed for bankruptcy and that her house was in the foreclosure process in 2014, but denied ever asking Brunson for money. She also denied seeing Brunson two weeks before the April 2 incident. However, Brunson said the woman had asked for financial help numerous times, but all he was willing to do was refer more friends so she could make more commission at work. "I let her down easy," Brunson said. "But it gets uncomfortable when someone keeps asking and you can't help." Prosecutors also presented evidence from a crime lab that showed Brunson's DNA was found on a bra the masseuse said she was wearing that day. "Mr. Brunson is obviously very thrilled by the decision," Berkson said after the judge issued his ruling. "Now he has to get his reputation back. There was a job opportunity he was unable to secure with this hanging over his head. Hopefully now he can put his life back together. Unfortunately, false accusations of a sex crime can really stick with people."
So what? His dad was accused (and acquitted in court) of something and that means what exactly for him? It really ironic to see you post from your high horse about this yet turn a blind eye to some of the shit our president is accused of.
Not me. Brunson may not be a spectacular player, but the kid can play and is solid all round player that can help many teams. Maybe you can do better in the late first round, but I can pretty much guarantee that you can do much worse.
