Jalen Brunson has always played bigger than his size. On Saturday night, he played like a giant. The Knicks won the 2025-26 NBA championship by beating the Spurs in Game 5, 94-90. It was far from easy. New York scored just 13 points in the first quarter and shot 29.5% from the field in the first half. Victor Wembanyama’s massive wingspan was enveloping the Knicks' offense as he racked up five blocks in the opening 20 minutes. Dylan Harper was playing like a 10-year vet in the biggest game of his life rather than a 20-year-old rookie. Everything seemed to go the Spurs’ way (including questionable calls from the referees). Combine all that with a poor shooting night for the Knicks and you would have expected the series to return to New York for Game 6.But Brunson refused to lose. The superstar point guard put forth one of the all-time great performances we’ve seen in an NBA Finals closeout game. When the whistle blew and the Knicks were champions, Brunson had 45 points on 14-for-27 shooting, including four three-pointers, and he drained 13 of his 15 free-throw attempts. It was a Herculean effort, a biblical showing by David versus the Goliath known as Wemby. In more human terms, it was a performance on par with Michael Jordan’s ’98 closeout performance, or more recently, on the level of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 50-burger in ‘21.JALEN BRUNSON DROPS 45 POINTS TO LEAD THE KNICKS TO THEIR FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP IN 53 YEARS 🔥THE NBA FINALS MVP @jalenbrunson1 CLOSES OUT THE SERIES WITH A MASSIVE PERFORMANCE. pic.twitter.com/ZgoldQ3Fzm— NBA (@NBA) June 14, 2026Even as New York fell down by 16 in the first quarter, Brunson kept chipping away. Even after appearing to seriously hurt his ankle after landing on Wembanyama’s foot in what could’ve been a flagrant foul, Brunson stayed on the floor and kept attacking. Even as the Knicks entered the fourth quarter down by 10 points with key teammates in foul trouble, Brunson did not back down. Because if he had, the day was lost. Karl-Anthony Towns, who was instrumental in New York winning its first two games of the Finals while Brunson struggled to make shots consistently, finished Game 5 with just two points in 23 minutes. OG Anunoby, the Game 4 hero, had 11 points on 3-for-11 shooting. The six players who came off the Knicks’ bench combined for nine points total. Mikal Bridges was the second-highest leading scorer for New York with all of 14 points. Nobody had it going tonight. And yet they all got to hold the Larry O’Brien Trophy after the final buzzer because Brunson steadfastly refused to shrink from the spotlight. It’s not surprising to read that, of course. That willingness to step up when the moment calls for it is a defining trait of Brunson’s career and a fundamental reason he has carved out a star role despite being at a significant athletic disadvantage (6'2", 190 pounds) against most opponents (much less the 7'4" Alien at center for the Spurs). But the lights are awfully bright in the NBA Finals. And they're brighter still when it’s clear to everybody watching that the Knicks would go only as far as Brunson could take them. He lives for those moments. More than that, Brunson thrives in them. That knowledge shouldn’t make it any less remarkable that he fully embraced that responsibility and delievered his highest-scoring game of the playoffs by the time it was all said and done. Brunson’s legend was minted forever with this performance. He scored 15 fourth-quarter points. He went on a personal 8–0 run to tie the game at 83 and put the Knicks up for good with a floater with one minute remaining. Every single possession, all eyes were on the point guard. And nearly every single possession, he made the right play, unblinking and unfaltering in the pressure cooker of an NBA Finals game on the road. Before he was named Finals MVP and got to raise the championship trophy, Brunson was asked by reporter Lisa Salters what it felt like to win a title. He fell silent, speechless, his eyes brimming with tears. When the star finally mustered up the ability to speak, he explained he was in awe of his team. It’s a feeling the rest of the NBA world shares after all the wild comebacks they pulled off this playoff run—but tonight, nobody is worthy of awe quite like Brunson.Overlooked in his NBA career before coming to New York, Brunson now towers above his peers as the last superstar standing, the Finals MVP and the king of NYC for the rest of his life. Not everyone can answer the call when greatness rings; Brunson’s ability to do so will be remembered as his defining trait. The Knicks are champions and Brunson, the heart and soul of the franchise for years, is the main reason why. More NBA Finals from Sports IllustratedListen to SI’s NBA podcast, Open Floor, below or on Apple and Spotify. Watch the show on SI’s YouTube channel.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow