They call him captain clutch for a reason.
Jalen Brunson has stepped up and delivered for the Knicks whenever they’ve needed him over the years, and that was again the case in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night.
The three-time All-Star point guard overcome a quiet start and a couple of injury scares to push New York past the Spurs with one of his signature scoring barrages down the stretch.
“He was huge for us,” Mike Brown said. “He did what MVP candidates are supposed to do -- we just put the ball in his hands and he got the job done for us.”
Brunson recorded just three first quarter points, missing his next six shots and turning the ball over twice after drilling a three for the first bucket of the game.
He was then forced to the locker room after appearing to injure his right knee when San Antonio’s Harrison Barnes fell on him late in the quarter.
The guard limped to the bench before heading back to the locker room.
Brunson was able to return minutes into the second but then had another scare, as he limped to the bench again after appearing to injure his ankle being stepped on by Luke Kornet.
He showed no ill-effects after a timeout, though, getting going with three straight buckets.
“You never know what the extent of an injury is,” Josh Hart said. “I knew once he got back in he would get some blood flowing and I wasn’t worried about it.”
“He’s just tough,” Mikal Bridges added. “That’s really it, nothing else.”
Brunson had just six points in the third quarter but then found his rhythm once again, coming off the bench in a back-and-forth tie game just five minutes into the fourth.
He immediately pushed the Knicks back in front with a personal 8-0 run.
The Spurs responded right back with Victor Wembanyama leading the way, but Brunson counterpunched with one last splurge to put New York’s 12th straight win away.
The reigning Clutch Player of the Year went 5-for-9 from the field in the frame, scoring 13 of his game-high 30 points to help steal the Game 1 victory on the road.
“He’s our captain for a reason,” Landry Shamet said. “He’s not afraid of the moment.”
“That’s what MVP’s are supposed to do,” Brown added. “We put the ball in his hands, we said we were going to live and die with him, and he just went and got it done for us.”
Jalen Brunson comes alive late, Knicks open NBA Finals with gutsy Game 1 win over Spurs
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