Jalen Brunson Has Unusual Memory From Knicks Season

Gleaning the worst-case scenario from an undoubtedly positive situation? Perhaps Jalen Brunson perfect for the captaincy of the New York Knicks, a team whose fanbase has mastered the art of such a pessimistic exercise.

When Brunson was officially coronated as the 36th captain of the New York Knicks franchise on Thursday, he was asked by MSG Network personality and master of ceremonies Alan Hahn about the lead-up to the honor, a historic 2023-24 season that set or approached several statistical landmarks of both the metropolitan and national variety.

Had Hahn listed all of Brunson’s accomplishments from last season, Thursday’s ceremony could’ve gone into the wee hours. He did make note of Brunson’s more significant happenings, such as his 61-point showing in San Antonio, his Knicks playoff-record 47 points in Game 4 of the opening series against Philadelphia … and, of course, the creation of the “Roommates Show” podcast with Josh Hart.

All that and more, however, couldn’t keep Brunson from staying centered on the final, heartbreaking memory which literally proved painful.

“Honestly, the only thing that is still on my mind was breaking my hand,” Brunson said with a laugh. “hat’s the only thing has been on my mind since the summer has started. I’ll think of all that stuff later. I’m just focused on what can we do to be better? What can we do to get past the second round? That’s our goal.”

Hahn asked if Brunson could flex the hand in question to prove his health, and the point guard appropriately responded with a thumbs up, which drew some applause from the guests gathered.

Brunson’s injury was perhaps an appropriately macabre way for the Knicks’ season to end: with the team’s primary rotation decimated by medical woes, the injury bug finally bit Brunson during New York’s eventual season finale, Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Indiana Pacers. Brunson’s broken hand, suffered while trying to stop a fastbreak, more or less shut down the Knicks’ hopes of advancement in a 130-109 defeat.

This wasn’t the first time that Brunson’s healed hand caused some panic in MSG circles this summer, as some worried when he flexed his upon entering the ring during a “WWE Smackdown” event at The World’s Most Famous Arena in June. Brunson later admitted it was all part of the show, which also featured Pacers star and MSG public enemy Tyrese Haliburton.

While Brunson and the Knicks obviously have larger aspirations, last season was one of the Knicks’ most successful in quite some time, as the team won 50 games and the second seed on the Eastern Conference playoff bracket for the first time in over a decade. Brunson had a career-best 28.7 points and 6.7 rebounds en route to his first invites to the NBA All-Star Game and All-NBA teams.

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