SAN ANTONIO: Jalen Brunson was fully aware of how much money some people spent to see the New York Knicks finally become champions again. Some tickets during the NBA Finals sold for $5,000, some for $50,000, some for probably more.
Of course, Brunson parted with more money than any of those fans.
Brunson is now an NBA champion and NBA Finals MVP in large part because of what he did against the San Antonio Spurs in the finals — though, really, his biggest contribution to this title run likely came in 2024, when he left as much as $113 million on the bargaining table to allow the Knicks the financial flexibility they needed to finish building a championship roster.
It was considered an unprecedented move.
It paid off.
Brunson had 45 points — including 13 straight down the stretch — to lead the Knicks to a 94-90, title-clinching win over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night, one that sealed a 4-1 win.
“I knew it was achievable,” Brunson said.
It was a storybook finish to a story like none other; not only did Brunson make the Knicks champions, he made his dad one as well. Rick Brunson played for the Knicks, and now is an assistant coach on his kid’s team.
“I have all of his trophies,” Rick Brunson said. “He has not one trophy at his house. I’m going to get his MVP trophy, too.”
Brunson now has a seat at the table of sports kings of New York, alongside the likes of Derek Jeter, Eli Manning, Mark Messier and others. Deliver a championship to the Big Apple and you get celebrated for life. Brunson doesn’t seek attention, in fact, he genuinely seems to dislike it, but such is the risk one takes when he leads a storied franchise to its first title in more than half a century.
There was no doubt Jalen Brunson would win finals MVP. Knicks coach Mike Brown doesn't understand why he wasn't among the top vote-getters for the regular-season MVP as well.
“I hope you guys will listen to me: He's a top-three MVP candidate,” Brown said, holding his grandson on his lap in the championship celebration. “Everybody kind of mentions his name in passing. They don't do it seriously enough. ... He is a fricking 1-A. He is a MVP candidate and I hope tonight you guys recognize what this man is about.
“He is him.”
There are countless reasons why the Knicks have turned their fortunes around over the last four seasons, but the list starts with Brunson. New York had four winning seasons in 21 years before Brunson arrived; the Knicks have had four winning seasons in the four years that he’s worn the franchise’s colours. They’ve now won eight playoff series with Brunson in the lineup; they won seven series, total, from 1998 through 2022.
He’s a bona fide superstar as well, with three consecutive All-Star selections and three consecutive seasons in which he’s averaged at least 26 points. The only other players to do that in each of the last three years, be an All-Star and average 26 points in every one, are Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
They’ve all been NBA champions, too. So, now, is Brunson.
“He’s a tremendous player that’s skilled, picks his spots, knows his angles, shoots contested shots without being sped up,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said earlier in the finals. “He’s a phenomenal player.”
Texas has been good to Brunson when it comes to titles. Villanova's 2016 championship was won in Houston, and the 2018 championship came in San Antonio — at the Alamodome, just a few minutes away from the arena that the Spurs call home.
Oddly, Texas wasn't always that good to Brunson as a pro — which is how he ended up in New York.
Brunson joined the Knicks in 2022 after leaving Dallas, which didn't offer him a contract anywhere near what the Villanova guard felt he deserved.
And then, two years later, Brunson took far less than he'd earned.
In 2024, Brunson signed a four-year extension with New York that could be worth $156.5 million if he accepts his option for the 2028-29 season. If Brunson waited until 2025 for his extension, he would have been eligible for a five-year, $269 million deal.
Brown said, if he was in that position, he wouldn't have taken the discount deal.
“He set the bar before he even stepped on the floor,” Brown said.
Brunson will almost certainly recoup some if not all of that money in his next extension, one that could top $300 million — possibly by a lot. But by passing up the much larger guarantee then, he provided the Knicks with the ability to make other moves that are paying off now.
And among the ones that followed his June 2024 decision: The Knicks brought in starters Mikal Bridges (a former Villanova teammate) and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Could all that have happened if Brunson didn’t accept the smaller extension? Maybe, but unlikely.
“I think he’s still underrated in the league, and he keeps proving people wrong, game by game, series by series, playoff appearance by playoff appearance,” said Knicks forward Josh Hart — one of the ‘Nova Knicks,’ the moniker given to the trio of himself, Brunson and Bridges, all NCAA champions at Villanova who have now become NBA champions in New York. “As a friend, as a teammate, it’s funny because you know he’s one of the best players in the league, and you’re happy that he’s starting to get some recognition.”
He’s getting more than some recognition. He’s getting a ring.
“Just thankful that this opportunity presented itself,” Brunson said, “and we were able to get it done.”