The New York Knicks made it official with Jalen Brunson today and announced him as the team’s official captain.
The even more official ceremonial presser will be broadcast on MSG at 2 p.m. ET on Thursday.
You don’t want to miss this 🗓️
📺 @MSGNetworks pic.twitter.com/K9uJPCBTUt
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) August 6, 2024
There remains one question: Are we really surprised by this? Furthermore, though MSG is Knicks State TV, how much of an “event” is this, actually?
Don’t get me wrong. None of this is to say that Jalen Brunson shouldn’t be captain of the New York Knicks, nor is the role unimportant. The Knicks have gone through enough in the last 20-plus years that leadership is nine-tenths of the formula.
Brunson has not just led the Knicks, but rallied them. He signed his contract and immediately answered with a career-best 24 points per game. Then, Brunson followed that up with another career year and 28.7 per game.
And just as a bonus, the Knicks have made the Eastern Conference Semifinals twice with him at the point. Oh, and don’t forget he also guided an injury-riddled roster to the No. 2 seed last season.
It’s great the Knicks are making Brunson’s captaincy official. He recently signed an extension and it was the next natural move. Jalen Brunson now joins 35 other New York captains, including Hall of Famers Willis Reed and Patrick Ewing.
However, any true blue Knicks fan who’s been paying attention knows whose team this is. Jalen Brunson runs the show with the rest of the Nova Knicks. Everyone from him to the fans to even elusive team president Leon Rose knows it’s time to get serious. New York basketball is ready for championships again, and Jalen Brunson is leading the way.
I guess what I’m getting at is if Rose & Co. think all this is necessary for a Jalen Brunson captaincy? They clearly underestimate how much the fans had already crowned him.
