After the New York Knicks got their second win of the season in just as many days, ESPN reporter Vince Goodwill asked point guard and team captain Jalen Brunson about the mentality needed to potentially help lead his team to a repeat as NBA Champions.
Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum had told the media just nights before that, after winning a title, teams need to find ways to trick themselves into remaining just as hungry for more success. After referencing Tatum's words of wisdom, Goodwill asked Brunson if he understood what the 2024 NBA Champion meant — and if he or his team had yet to begin executing those kinds of mental tactics.
Brunson's answer was as cold-blooded as the guard himself every time the NBA Playoffs roll around.
"You said we have to trick ourselves to be motivated? What did I say at the end of the last- my presser, last time. Do you remember? Were you here for that? ... Yeah, don't praise us anymore. So, there's the trick. Trickery, right?"
Knick fans can certainly worry about the squads in the Eastern Conference that improved this past offseason, or whether or not their team's self-imposed spending limit at the salary cap's second apron is going to leave them without enough center depth to be truly competitive. Even after an 0-3 start, though, this specific Knicks core has proven exactly why their mentality should really never be of much concern. And after Wednesday night, they're already two wins into proving it once again.
Knicks' slump last season only came after an early lock-in for NBA Cup
Last season, the Knicks' 2-9 midseason stretch left fans feverishly operating trade machines and questioning the still-recent hire of head coach Mike Brown. The season before, the team had produced its best result in a quarter of a century under Tom Thibodeau. Did Leon Rose and James Dolan get greedy and reach too high?
No.
Brown began establishing his culture early, fully embracing his role as the newcomer and making efforts at Summer League and throughout the 2025 NBA offseason to get to know his roster. By early December, they were still shedding old habits and accounting for learning curves. They also began to show the makings of a championship-level group, evidenced most clearly by their 2025 Emirates NBA Cup Championship victory in Las Vegas.
The championship game, which wound up being a preview of the 2026 NBA Finals, was just the first time that Brown's Knicks banded together effectively enough to power through every round of an NBA tournament. And after taking some time to rediscover their fundamentals, and the consequences of playing like they were above them, they were exactly where they needed to be by the postseason.
New York's players may not be as concerned about winning the league's In-Season Tournament now that they've worn NBA Championship rings around their fingers, but one thing is clear — their Captain's mind is already set on May and June.
Add us as a preferred source on Google