Jalen Brunson hasn't played, yet, in the fourth quarter of a game in which the New York Knicks closed out a 2026 NBA Playoff series.
The team has been shredding the competition in front of them, giving them plenty of time off between rounds. For New York's starters, the blowout nature of those series-ending wins meant that their additional time for rest and recovery included entire quarters.
Brunson's fourth-quarter scoring is their single most valuable offensive weapon. They needed his help to mount their Game 1 comeback over the Cleveland Cavaliers, but mostly made it to the NBA Finals without "Captain Clutch's" heroics. That should help the superstar recuperate the energy he'll need to exact his will, in any potential late-game scenarios, during the NBA Finals.
Knicks' historic dominance in closeout games will give them a boost
In Mike Brown's first season as head coach, he's diversified the offensive threats his group presents while improving their defense — with largely the same personnel the team had last year. While the results were tumultuous throughout the regular season, the fruits of those labors are incredibly obvious to those watching the Knicks crush their opponents.
The Knicks are one of four teams, ever, to have recorded several 30+ point series-closing wins in a single postseason run.
When they ended the Cavaliers' season, they became the only team in the NBA's history to have three series-closing wins by 20 points (or more). It just so happens that all three of those wins were by 30 points or more. And, as a result, Brunson didn't need to play in the fourth quarter of any of them.
A team shaming their opponents off of the court to such historic extents simply isn't going to be reliant on anyone's late-game scoring, outside of their bench players. But especially given the extent to which Brunson has been responsible for Knicks' offense in recent years, and even throughout much of this year's regular season, it's especially impactful for the guard to be getting this extra rest.
Brunson is ready to listen to what the game tells him to do
The guard hasn't only impacted games as an elite scorer, with his playmaking on full display against the Cavaliers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Kenny Atkinson's group, after watching Brunson snatch Game 1 out of their hands with his isolation scoring, decided to make anyone else on the Knicks' roster beat them.
Josh Hart was up to the task, and Brunson was glad to facilitate. The guard had 14 assists, his new career high in the NBA Playoffs, after scoring just two points in the first half. The Knicks' 16-point victory proved that they were versatile, and not dependent on Brunson's scoring chops, when it comes to creating offense.
Regardless of who the Knicks face in the NBA Finals, the approach will be the same: play the diversified styles of offense that have forced opponents into submission, adjusting based on the defensive coverages players are facing.
If New York's opponent decides to challenge Brunson, he'll be ready to dust off his Captain Clutch uniform.
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