Jalen Brunson hangs Christmas Day masterpiece in streak-snapping win over Bucks
NEW YORK — For Christmas, the Knicks got the best player on the floor.
It’s the undeniable fact in the Knicks’ first victory over the Milwaukee Bucks in their 10 tries since the Bucks won the NBA title in 2021.
Jalen Brunson is what they say he is not.
Call him an All-Star. Call him 1A. Call him the best player on a really good — maybe even championship-level team.
That’s what the Bucks are — championship-level — and New York’s captain has had their number this season.
Brunson scored a game-high 38 points on 15-of-28 shooting from the field to stun the Bucks in 129-122 Christmas Day victory. He moved into third place all time on the Knicks’ Christmas scoring leaderboard.
Ahead of him: Richie Guerin (40 points) and Bernard King's legendary 60-point night.
Two days ago, the Bucks beat the Knicks by 19, but Brunson scored 36 that night on 15-of-26 shooting.
And on Nov. 3 in the In-Season Tournament group stage opener in Milwaukee, the star Knicks guard scored 45 points.
He also had 42 points against the Pistons on Nov. 30 and a career-high 50 points against the Phoenix Suns on Dec. 15.
And on Christmas, the Knicks followed Brunson’s lead.
He scored 20 points in the first half. His 38-point game only included one made shot from downtown.
Brunson was methodical. He was patient. A basketball surgeon logging holiday hours.
But he was aggressive. Unrelenting. A shark smelling a wounded opponent’s blood in the water.
The Bucks were not wounded. The Knicks defeated a championship contender at full strength.
They followed Brunson’s lead all along. His energy and resolve trickled and permeated throughout the entire Knicks rotation.
Brunson scored 20 of his 38 points in the first half. He and RJ Barrett scored the Knicks’ first 20 points of the night.
Barrett broke free from a brutal six-game shooting skid. He scored 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field.
Immanuel Quickley scored a key 20 points off the bench, and Julius Randle finished with 24 points and nine rebounds.
Randle nearly tackled Brunson during his walk-off interview with ESPN.
“All-Star!” Randle shouted at his teammate before doing a walk-off interview of his own.
Brunson, of course, said it’s his teammates and their selflessness that gives him confidence.
He talks like a 1A. Walks like a 1A. And on Monday, he outplayed two other 1A superstar players.
Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 32 points, 13 rebounds and six assists, and Damian Lillard added 32 points and eight assists.
Neither were a match for Brunson’s unrelenting offense. Antetokounmpo started slow and picked up in the second half. Lillard made a late run but couldn’t match the Knicks’ star tit-for-tat down the stretch.
The Knicks also defended the non-star players more effectively.
Two nights prior, Bucks sharpshooter Malik Beasley hit five 3s on a number of defensive blunders that gave him open looks.
On Christmas, the Knicks held Beasley scoreless. He shot 0 of 5 from downtown and was minus-10, the worst net rating of any Bucks starter.
Isaiah Hartenstein got in early foul trouble but finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Taj Gibson played 15 minutes and blocked three shots.
And the Knicks rode Brunson to their first victory over the Bucks of the season.
After losing nine in a row, the Knicks start a new streak of their own.
Not a bad Christmas present for a team whose major concern revolved around its ability to beat championship-level opponents.
It takes championship-level players to take down the best teams in basketball.
Brunson is clearly one of such players.
Regardless of who says otherwise.
Knicksmas
The victory against the Bucks marked the Knicks’ 56th Christmas Day game. They improved to a 24-32 record.
Tough road ahead
The Knicks’ schedule stays tough until the second week of January.
Next up is a three-game road trip against playoff opponents, including a back-to-back: at Oklahoma City against the Thunder on Wednesday, then a Friday-Saturday swing at Orlando and Indiana.
