Jalen Brunson is now an NBA champion and finals MVP. Gregory Shamus / Getty ImagesJune 13, 2026 Updated 11:58 pm EDTSAN ANTONIO — Jalen Brunson scored 45 points in the New York Knicks’ NBA Finals-clinching Game 5 victory over the Spurs and was named Most Valuable Player of the series.Brunson, 29, the first cornerstone of the champion Knicks after arriving as the team’s marquee free-agent signing in 2022, averaged 32.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists in the five-game series. He was simply brilliant on Saturday when most of his teammates struggled, shooting 14 of 27 from the field and 13 of 15 from the foul line.Brunson scored 15 points in the fourth quarter of Game 5 — a period in which the Knicks trailed by seven at the start and by as many as 10 before mounting yet another comeback. The Knicks won 94-90 after trailing by as many as 16 in the first half.Brunson’s 45 points tied an NBA record for a road player in a series-clinching victory.“It’s everything I dreamed of,” Brunson said on the floor to ESPN’s Ernie Johnson. “This is why I picked New York.”
Brunson is the son of Knicks assistant coach and former New York player Rick Brunson, who was on the Knicks’ 1999 Finals team that lost to the Spurs. Rick Brunson joined New York’s coaching staff about a month before his son signed with the team. Leon Rose was Jalen Brunson’s agent before becoming Knicks president of basketball operations in 2020 and is also Jalen’s godfather.The ties between the Brunson family and the Knicks run deep, now permanently cemented by the franchise’s first championship since 1973 and Jalen’s series MVP honor.This story will be updated.Jun 14, 2026Connections: Sports EditionSpot the pattern. Connect the termsFind the hidden link between sports terms
