What Jalen Brunson’s injury return means for Knicks…
Jalen Brunson is set to return to action for the Knicks on Sunday night, so let’s see what it means for the team moving forward.
Jalen Brunson is set to return to action for the New York Knicks on Sunday night after missing 15 games with an ankle injury. New York did fairly well in Brunson’s absence, posting a 9-6 record during their stretch without their superstar point guard. Mikal Bridges and others figured out their roles without Brunson, helping keep the team afloat in his absence. However, New York is obviously better with their All-Star point guard on the court, and that should be clear upon his return.
Jalen Brunson’s absence should help the Knicks in the long run
As mentioned above, the Knicks fared well without Brunson. A lot of that had to do with Bridges’ strong play. He averaged 20.5 points, 4.9 assists, and 3.3 rebounds despite playing one fewer minute per game during Brunson’s injury absence.
Will Bridges be able to keep playing at this level now that Brunson is back? Probably not, largely because Bridges had more creative freedom to do things with the ball. When Brunson is on the court, Bridges will inherently have less ball handling responsibilities.
However, Bridges’ newfound confidence should remain. He’d struggled since joining the Knicks, obviously lacking an understanding of how he fit in with his new team. At the very least, he now sees how he can impact the team, and how important he really is to New York’s overall success.
Brunson’s time away from the court also gave OG Anunoby more confidence, not that it was needed as much as it was for Bridges. And it also allowed Delon Wright and Tyler Kolek to gain momentum, providing coach Tom Thibodeau with even more guard depth and options off the bench, just in case he ends up needing them down the stretch.
Jalen Brunson and Mitchell Robinson will be dangerous together
Brunson and Mitchell Robinson haven’t had the opportunity to share the floor too much this season. That’s a shame given how they impact the game.
Robinson is a defensive menace. New York has given up an average of 107.2 points per game in the 14 contests Robinson has played this season, which is about five points fewer than the 112.9 points per game they surrendered prior to Robinson’s return.
That stinginess should be even more impactful when paired with Brunson’s keen offensive abilities. The Knicks were averaging 117.2 points per game with Brunson through the bulk of the season. However, without him, they are averaging only 111.5.
Imagine combining 117 points per game with holding opponents to 107? Theoretically, they would achieve the second-best net rating in the league behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder.
What does a healthy Jalen Brunson mean for the Knicks?
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) is fouled by New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) as he drives to the basket against Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) and guard Jalen Brunson (11) during the first quarter of game 5 of the first round of the 2024 NBA playoffs at Madison Square Garden.
Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
This remains the real question—is a fully healthy Knicks team capable of getting past the second round of the playoffs? So far, Brunson has been unable to lead them there. But there were extenuating circumstances last year, as New York limped through the Eastern Conference semifinals, dealing with injuries to Robinson, Anunoby, Bojan Bogdanovic, Josh Hart, and—ultimately— Brunson, himself.
Still, it was unlikely that a healthy Knicks team without Julius Randle, who had been out since late January, was going to push the Boston Celtics very far if they managed to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals. However, this year’s team was given a facelift with the idea of competing with the likes of Boston in mind. And no one’s really seen the Knicks at full strength.
Thus, the final few games this season will be an amazing test to see just how good New York can be. Getting past the second round will be incredibly tough, as the Knicks will likely have to out duel the Celtics—and that’s assuming a first-round victory, as well.
But the silver lining is that if they can get past Boston, no other teams are much scarier. And a second-round victory would give the Knicks an unprecedented confidence.
All of this begins with a successful return from Brunson, because the Knicks are only as good as its best player—and that’s just fine with most people around the team considering who we’re talking about.
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