I'm not much of a brush fan either, and these days, even combing seems like a chore.

If only our hair could stay tangle-free and perfectly aligned all of the time, right? hehe
The only time I use a brush anymore is, ironically, when I'm measuring. I'm not really even sure why.
Depending on the type of bristles passing through your hair, brushing can be quite damaging. Plastic bristles have seams on them which can scrape the hair shafts. That whole 100 strokes a day mantra is rubbish.
If you're purely going after scalp stimulation, massaging is best. I used to do this every morning before getting into the shower because in addition to stimulating circulation on the scalp, it also helped me shed all of the hair and dandruff that would have fallen from my scalp naturally during the day.
There are many different methods and tricks to scalp massaging, so if you've never done this before, try this and that until you find something that works.