WATCH: Patrick Ewing ‘Always’ Saw Brunson as Knicks Captain

Jalen Brunson’s transformation from New York Knicks ball boy to captain was officially completed on Thursday and one metropolitan legend saw it coming.

Brunson official reveal as the 36th captain was staged in front of some notable witnesses at Madison Square Garden, including some of those who held the title before him. One of those was Patrick Ewing, Brunson’s de facto playmate when he hung around the Knicks facilities as a youth while his father and current assistant coach Rick took the floor.

Brunson’s Thursday arrival was heralded by a video commemorating his Knicks career to date, one narrated by Ewing as images of his metropolitan tenure flashed on MSG’s “GardenVision.” As flashes of Brunson young past were displayed, Ewing claimed to have seen Brunson’s ascension coming.

View the full video here, courtesy of the Knicks’ official account.

“If someone told me that the young boy running around The Garden would grow up to be the captain of the New York Knicks, you know what? I’d probably believe them,” Ewing said in the video entitled “Just be Jalen.” “Even as a kid, you could connect with anyone around you. And the confidence! You’d walk up to anyone in that locker room and say just about anything.”

“It was family, it was always family with you. People just want to be around you, Jalen. You’re a born leader and, like (Knicks’ MSG Networks commentator) Mike Breen said, you were born to play basketball.”

As the video transitions to more recent Knicks moments and various images of Brunson firing up MSG crowds, Ewing offers to take Breen’s comments a step further, remarking that his unique brand of basketball has made him perfect for Manhattan longevity.

“You were born to play basketball for the Knicks, for kids to wear the jersey that you wore as a kid, but with your name on the back of it,” Ewing said. “Like a true New Yorker, you dare people to doubt you and go about your business. So, yeah, I believe it: Captain of the Knicks … Captain of the basketball team in the city where they love basketball the most.”

Ewing was one of several members of Knicks royalty on hand on Thursday, as he was flanked by Allan Houston and John Starks, as well as head coach Tom Thibodeau and president Leon Rose. Past, present, and future teammates like Mikal Bridges, Miles McBride, and Jericho Sims likewise arrived to take in metropolitan history.

Asked about the video tribute in post-introductory comments, Brunson thanked Ewing for his lasting support.

“He means a lot to myself, my family, and the city,” he said. “I’m just happy to have him in my corner.”

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