Jalen Brunson might be playing for something more than a championship in these NBA Finals.
A victory would put him in the conversation as the greatest New York Knick ever, and at the same time earn New York sports immortality status.
After just four years, he is all over the record book for a Knicks franchise that has been around for all 80 NBA seasons. He is already third on its career list in playoff points. The Knicks have advanced in the postseason every year since Brunson arrived in 2022, after winning one series in the two decades before.
Now they are in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, with a shot to win their first title since 1973.
Patrick Ewing, Walt Frazier and Willis Reed — in some order — are widely regarded as the top players in franchise history. If Brunson can lead the Knicks to the title now, there’s an argument he could be the best of them all.