It took four minutes for Jalen Brunson to make Ausar Thompson eat his words

You'd think that Jalen Brunson disrespect would no longer be a thing, considering all that he's accomplished in his first three seasons with the New York Knicks. Somehow, it's still out there.

Before it was official that the Knicks and Pistons would play each other in the first round, David Dennis Jr. said Cade Cunningham, not Brunson, would be the best player on the floor. Brunson is a proven playoff performer, while Cunningham made his playoff debut in Game 1, and he shot 8-of-21.

Brunson's ankle was bothering him on Saturday, but he still managed to put up 34 points. Switching his sneakers in the fourth quarter helped. Brunson's performance wasn't enough to concern Ausar Thompson, though. The second-year forward said on Sunday that he had no challenges guarding Brunson in Game 1.

Thompson might've regretted those words a few minutes after tipoff on Monday. Brunson crossed midcourt a little over four minutes into the game, where Karl-Anthony Towns stood ready to set a screen. Thompson got stuck behind KAT while Brunson dribbled the ball between his legs before quickly cutting to the right. The Pistons forward was a step too slow and fell to the floor, while Brunson scored.

Jalen Brunson drops Ausar Thompson during Knicks-Pistons Game 2

Brunson scored 12 of his 34 points on Saturday in the fourth quarter with Thompson as the primary defender when he was in the game. The star shot 12-of-27 from the field after struggling offensively in the first half. It took Brunson longer than he wanted to get going, but what matters is how he finished.

Thompson said he needed to come out "aggressive" in Game 2 without giving the referees a reason to call a foul. He said Brunson is good at "drawing fouls" before correcting himself and saying the guard is good at "selling fouls" (subscription required). Thompson had five fouls in 23 minutes.

He did call Brunson a great player, so it's not like he fully minimized the guard's impact. Thompson might want to think twice before saying there are no challenges that come with guarding Brunson, though. Brunson's crafty footwork and speed make it hard to keep up with him, even for Thompson, who is one of the league's best young defenders.

Brunson isn't concerned with what Thompson says about him, but is instead focused on the task at hand, which is beating the Pistons to advance to the second round. Going up 2-0 with the series going back to Detroit would be a good step toward achieving that.