Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks
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Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks
New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson didn’t let a lingering postseason slight slide quietly.
During NBA All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, Brunson confronted Paul Pierce on The Roommates Show, revisiting the viral moment from May 2024 when the Boston Celtics legend publicly stomped on a Brunson Knicks jersey following New York’s playoff exit.
What followed was a playful — yet pointed — exchange that underscored how far the Knicks have come since that moment.
“I have his jersey in the back because he posted a video burning my jersey,” Brunson said on the show, setting the tone with a grin.
Pierce immediately pushed back.
“No, I didn’t burn your jersey. Let’s get it straight,” Pierce said. “We can look it up. Fact check. I didn’t burn it and I didn’t know it was your jersey. They just gave me a Knicks jersey. I needed any Knicks jersey. That’s the one that came out.”
“Man, you burned my jersey,” Brunson replied. “That’s the story I’m going with.”
“So we just jumped it,” Pierce said. “We jumped on it.”
The moment quickly spiraled into laughter, but the history behind it carried weight.
The Knicks Jersey Stomp That Sparked It All
Pierce’s viral video dates back to May 2024, when he shared footage of himself stomping on a Jalen Brunson Knicks jersey after New York was eliminated by the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
At the time, Pierce had already antagonized Knicks fans with a public wager. He promised to buy and wear a Brunson jersey if New York advanced past the first round. After the Knicks eliminated the Philadelphia 76ers, Pierce followed through — only to later stomp on the same jersey once the season ended.
Brunson, meanwhile, was playing through pain. He averaged 29.7 points per game in the series but fractured his hand late in Game 7, limiting his effectiveness as the Knicks came up short.
The episode became fuel — even if Pierce later joked about forgetting why he did it.
“I’m trying to figure out,” Pierce said on the podcast. “Why do I do that?”
Brunson’s On-Court Answer Came One Year Later
What Pierce’s jersey stomp did not anticipate was what followed next season.
One year after that moment, Brunson led the Knicks to their most meaningful postseason run in a generation — and did it at Boston’s expense.
In the 2025 playoffs, New York eliminated the Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals, with Brunson at the center of it all. The victory sent the Knicks to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years, a milestone that redefined Brunson’s legacy in Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks’ run ultimately ended — once again — against the Pacers in the conference finals. But the damage to old narratives had already been done.
Brunson had answered Pierce the only way that truly mattered.
From Rivalry to Respect — With Humor
That context gave the All-Star Weekend exchange its bite.
Pierce joked about the Celtics “putting the Knicks out,” only for Brunson to cut him off.
“Who’s ‘we’?” Brunson asked.
“The Celtics,” Pierce replied.
“No,” Brunson shot back, smiling.
The moment landed because the balance of power has shifted. Brunson is now firmly established as a postseason leader, an All-NBA-level guard, and the face of a Knicks franchise back in the championship conversation.
Pierce, for all the bravado, acknowledged the silliness of it all.
“That would be a lot more than what I did,” Pierce said when Brunson joked about returning the favor. “I just stepped on it a couple times.”
A Rivalry Moment That Reflects Knicks’ Rise
What began as a viral stunt has turned into a snapshot of New York’s resurgence.
Brunson didn’t need to burn a jersey. He delivered his response between the lines — lifting the Knicks past Boston, back onto the league’s biggest stage, and into relevance that no amount of stomping could erase.