Not wasting any time or energy arguing about Brunson with anyone. He has averaged nearly 30 PPG in 61 career playoff games for the Knicks. He just led the Knicks to their first chip in 53 years and outplayed the reigning 2-time MVP against a Spurs team where he had to face one of the league’s best defenders with the unanimous DPOY roaming the paint. He scored 45 of their 94 points on the road to lock up the title. What more do people want?
The New York Knicks set an all-time Fanatics merchandise record for any championship team ever across all sports in the first 24 hours following their clinching win in Game 5. The 2026 NBA Finals set a new league record for merchandise sales across https://t.co/tGSdOTFSoY, Fanatics, team stores and third-party retail, doubling the previous NBA Finals record set in 2020.
If anyone else
• was the best clutch player since Jordan
• scored the most 4th quarter PPG ever in the Finals
• had the most 40 point playoff games since they entered the league
• dropped 45 in a hostile arena to close out a championship
They would be unanimous BITW
Tom Thibodeau didn’t coach the Knicks to a championship.
He dragged them out of two decades of irrelevance, made winning basketball the expectation, built the culture, and laid the foundation for the team that eventually got there.
Not every architect gets to cut the ribbon.
In 1999, the Spurs beat the Knicks by winning Games 1, 2, 4, and 5.
In 2026, the Knicks beat the Spurs by winning Games 1, 2, 4, and 5.
The exact same sequence.
The exact same matchup.
27 years later, New York got its revenge.
Kyrie’s playoff stats as a #1 option:
• 9 games
• 5-4 record
• 21.3 PPG
• 4.3 RPG
• 7.0 APG
• 38/30/90% (49% TS)
Brunson’s playoff stats as a #1 option
• 61 games
• 39-22 record
• 29.4 PPG
• 3.6 RPG
• 6.6 APG
• 47/36/85% (57% TS)
Can we be serious?