Jalen Brunson will return to Dallas to face the Mavericks on December 27

The Christmas season is going to be awesome for Dallas Mavericks fans. First, we have a Luka Doncic-LeBron James matchup on Christmas day. Then, just 48 hours later, Jalen Brunson will make his much-anticipated return to Dallas when the New York Knicks come to town on December 27.

When Brunson signed with the Knicks, he left Dallas with mixed reviews. Nearly everyone respects Jalen and is thankful for all he brought to the Mavericks and their run to the Western Conference Finals, but some fans are a little bitter he left for the Big Apple. Judging the pulse of the MFFL’s, it feels like most understand Brunson probably wasn’t going to get as much money by staying in Dallas. The blame should fall on the Mavs organization, not Brunson.

With that being said, Brunson will likely get a lengthy tribute video upon his return to the Mavs. We can debate the criteria for tribute videos in a different article (they’re handed out like candy now), but it would be shocking if Brunson didn’t get a good one, met with a standing ovation from the crowd.

And he deserves all of that! JB was drafted in the second round of the 2018 draft and out-performed every expectation. He became a near-All-Star level player and was the second-best player on a team that came dang close to making a run at an NBA championship.

Not only does he deserve credit for what he did on the court, but he deserves credit for his presence off the court. It’s simple really. The vibes when Jalen was here, were... immaculate.

I’m guessing every member of the team is happy for JB. From Luka Doncic to Dorian Finney-Smith to Jason Kidd. People respect when players get paid. They’re all friends and that’s what they want for one another. But the Mavs are full of competitors, and they’ll definitely want to destroy the Knicks when JB makes his return on December 27. They’ll make him reconsider his decision to be in the visitor's locker room after a Luka Special.

Also, Jalen will probably have a little cooking for his former team and fans. No matter what, it’ll be fun. December 27 can’t come soon enough.