weekend report 008: the king of new york

brunson's story was never just about basketball

Hi friend,

Happy (almost) NBA Finals. It’s been so fun watching the games, reading everyone’s content, and learning about the history behind each team and series.

The finals don’t actually start until June 3rd and with OKC & the Spurs heading into game 7, it genuinely feels like a toss up on who’s going to play against the Knicks next week. My hope is that the Spurs pull through so we get a Knicks vs. Spurs Finals, which would be a full history re-run from 1999 and honestly too poetic to ignore.

But regardless of who wins the western conference finals, watching the Knicks this postseason has been really special. To be fair, this is my first year consistently watching and as a Knicks fan (and VJ Maxx loyalist… can’t help it lol), you can really see how hard they have been fighting for this.

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At the center of it all is the King of New York, Jalen Brunson, a 29 year old point guard who didn’t just grow up with hoop dreams, he grew up inside them. His dad, Rick Brunson played nine seasons in the NBA, hopping between eight different teams on unguaranteed contracts, never really getting the stability or the ending he deserved, but is now a proud father and assistant coach to the same team his son plays for and the same team he played for years ago. Crazy full circle moment.

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But just because Jalen’s dad was an NBA player doesn’t mean his path was paved for him. If anything, from a young age, he watched what the grind really looked like and still had to go out and prove himself every single step of the way.

He went to Villanova where he won two NCAA championships, took home the Wooden Award, the Naismith Award (both celebrate the best college player of the year), and the Bob Cousy Award (Top Men's Collegiate Point Guard). He was also later named College Basketball Player of the Decade by Sporting News. By every measure he was one of the best college players of his generation.

And then draft night came. 32 players got called before him and he was picked 33rd overall.

For a player who had just collected nearly every major award in college basketball, being picked 33rd stings. That's 32 players called before you regardless of everything you gave and all of the accolades you received. It tells you exactly what the league thought of his ceiling from the very beginning. Too small. Too slow. The kind of player who can “succeed in college but probably won’t translate”. It seemed like critics thought he didn’t have the size or explosiveness that teams wanted. What he did have was everything that doesn’t necessarily show up on a measuring tape, but for a long time, the league consistently downplayed him.

Jalen spent his first four years in Dallas playing behind Luka Doncic, learning and working hard. But when his moment came during the 2022 playoffs with Luka sidelined, he showed up in a way that people started to notice. And Dallas had the chance to lock him in and didn’t so that summer, Jalen signed with the Knicks as an unrestricted free agent, choosing one of the most pressure filled, historically heartbroken fan bases in professional sports. Eventually, becoming the heartbeat of the franchise.

In hindsight, it’s easy to say that him reaching the NBA finals was inevitable because, well… we can see that he’s here now, but sometimes that’s the trap of looking backwards. Nothing about Jalen Brunson’s path was actually guaranteed.

I’m sure plenty of second round picks with great college careers disappear into the league and never find their moment. Plenty of “undersized” guards get labeled early and carry that label for the rest of their career. Plenty of players go to a pressure franchise like the Knicks and crumble under the weight of it.

What made it feel inevitable wasn’t talent alone, It was the combination of talent, character, timing, and choice. He had to choose the Knicks. The Knicks had to be ready to build around him. He had to stay healthy. He had to keep showing up in the big moments consistently enough that the city believed in him before the results fully proved them right.

So the better way to say it might be, it was inevitable only because of who he is, not because of what he had. A lot of people have talent, not everyone responds to pressure the way he does.

And now he has the Knicks in the NBA Finals for the first time in 27 years.

The league doubted him at every turn. He just kept proving them wrong.

But here is where the story gets even more special.

27 years ago, Rick Brunson who didn’t become an NBA Champion now gets to stand on the sideline as an assistant coach watching his son lead the same franchise back to the biggest stage in basketball. While he didn’t get to win, he raised someone who has a chance to.

And regardless of what happens during the finals, it’s not just a sports story anymore. It’s a legacy story. It’s a father planting a seed he never got to see fully bloom. Rick doesn’t just have a son. He now has a second chance.

I’m convinced basketball has the most compelling storylines of any sport. Once you start looking into the players and the history behind them it’s almost impossible not to care.

And what I love most is that the lessons translate. We may not all face the amount of pressure athletes have, but it’s proof that the blessings God places on your life do not come without challenges. Your perspective matters through the journey. And your success also depends on how you look at your circumstances. Because if you’re not careful you’ll actually start to believe what people say about you. That you’re too small. That you’re not good enough. That your moment already passed. You’ll think the blessing you received is actually a curse.

It’s a reminder not to let those words become your story. Jalen Brunson didn’t and look where he is now.

27 years in the making for the franchise. His testimony arrived right on time.

And now, there’s only one thing left to do… finish the job! <3

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wellness activity

• Journal your own testimony. write down one thing you were told you couldn’t do that you did anyway. keep it somewhere you can see it and let it remind you of what you are capable of.

  • if you feel like sharing, drop it in the comments. i would love to cheer you on <3

    

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brand stuff

• Oura Ring x Knicks - oura just dropped a thinner, beautiful ring and i’ve been trying to convince myself i don't need it, but i do. if you know me you know i am a loyal oura ring girl despite its fitness tracking shortcomings. and apparently they have been an official knicks partner since 2023 which i just found out and feel like i should have known sooner.

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out my cart

• Suri toothbrush - an eco-friendly toothbrush that comes with a UV-C cleaning case that removes 99.9% of bacteria in one minute. it's the kind of thing you didn't know you needed until you have it and then you can never go back.

• Cymbiotika Vitamin C Immune + Collagen Support Liposomal - i was sick last week (and one too many times this year) so i decided that i need to focus on building up my immune system. these taste so good and have helped with my recovery.

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