The New York Knicks are continuing to bask in the glory of winning the NBA championship, and rightfully so, as it’s been a long time coming for the team, former players, and the city.
In the NBA Finals, they survived a tough, young San Antonio Spurs team led by 7-foot-4 Frenchman Victor Wembanyama, thanks to the contributions of a mighty point guard, Jalen Brunson.
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The 6-foot-2 NBA All-Star delivered an NBA Finals MVP-worthy performance, scoring 45 points in Game 5 in San Antonio to lead his team to victory, 94-90.
And that immediately brought attention to Brunson, who had previously been overlooked in the NBA Draft and during his earlier seasons with the Dallas Mavericks. He was a second-round pick in 2018, played in the shadow of superstar Luka Doncic in Dallas, but then made the major career decision to sign as a free agent with the Knicks.
More news: Kevin Garnett Offers to Help Victor Wembanyama Address His Major Weakness
It’s proved a major win for Brunson and the Knicks, and allowed teammate Josh Hart to seemingly call out WNBA coach Becky Hammons, who had previously suggested Brunson wouldn’t be able to get it done for a Knicks’ championship.
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“I’m not naming names, but I’m still waiting for somebody to say they was wrong about someone who led our team to a championship in 53 years … I know they have media availability, so we’ll be waiting for that apology,” Hart said during the recent live edition of “The Roommates Show.”
That same show featured ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith as a guest, and he officially apologized for previously doubting Hart and Brunson.
Meanwhile, Hammon’s comments, made three years ago, might have stung Brunson, as she’s a former guard herself, who was unable to deliver a championship for the WNBA’s New York Liberty. She’s now a coach who has captured three championships with rosters of other talented players to guide.
She currently coaches a Las Vegas Aces team that seems capable of winning yet another WNBA championship, and that is the “media availability” Hart referred to, due to her pregame, postgame, and other interviews.
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“At the end of the day, they don’t have a dude. You gotta have a dude. You gotta have a 1-A dude,” Hammons said three years ago while on ESPN. “And they’re missing that at the end of the day if we’re just getting down to brass tacks.”
ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins disagreed with Hammons on the same show, telling her they have Brunson as “that dude.”
“He’s too small,” she said, adding moments later, “If your best player is small, you’re not winning.”
Last month, she stood by her comments, saying, “I said what I said. If he proves me wrong, he proves me wrong.”
They did, and Brunson added an NBA Finals MVP along with a championship ring in an impressive Knicks postseason. He’s proved that it’s not the size of the player, but the size of the fight and skills in that player that really matter.
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For more about the WNBA and NBA, head over to Newsweek Sports.
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