SAN ANTONIO — Jalen Brunson has a story. In 2018, Brunson, then a rookie second-round draft pick, played in a pickup game with Luka Dončić. Brunson marveled at how Dončić, Dallas’s celebrated draftee, moved effortlessly on the floor. Watching Dončić, Brunson recalled, “made me kind of question myself, to see how hard I actually had to work to be in the position I wanted to be.” It was the first time he felt that way, Brunson said, adding, “probably the last.”
The Knicks beat the Spurs in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, and there was no question who the best player was on the floor. Brunson finished with 30 points, 19 in the second half, 13 in the fourth quarter, when New York grabbed an eight-point lead, coughed it up, then needed some Brunson heroics to secure a 105–95 win.
