It really wasn’t that long ago that Jalen Brunson was still considered a sidekick at best, a second-round talent, widely labeled as overpaid — upon signing with the Knicks in 2022 — before becoming the best bargain in the NBA.
Brunson joined a team that had made the playoffs once in nine years and became Bernard King to a generation, improbably making it so that it is no longer blasphemy to evoke the Brooklyn legend who appeared to walk on water.
Entering the Knicks’ fourth straight postseason, few players make a fan base feel as comfortable in the final minutes as Brunson does. Few players seem so prepared for this moment and this stage. There is no reason to think this year will be any different.
But Brunson’s first hurdle could be the toughest he faces this spring, matching up with Atlanta’s 6-foot-7 defensive stopper — Dyson Daniels.
“He’s a great defender,” Brunson said following Wednesday’s practice. “He’s very smart and he’s able to use his wingspan and create havoc on and off the ball. He does a lot of great things for their team and puts them in position to be successful.”
Daniels followed last season’s All-Defensive First Team selection by ranking second in the league in turnovers forced and tying for fourth in steals per game (2.0).
The 23-year-old Australian will make his playoff debut Saturday at Madison Square Garden in Game 1 of their first-round series, having spent more time defending Brunson over the past two seasons than any other player in the league, according to NBA tracking data.
Daniels’ length — including a five-inch height advantage over Brunson — and athleticism have created issues for the Knicks star, including Atlanta’s NBA Cup quarterfinal win at the Garden last season, when Brunson was held to 15 points. Brunson and Daniels’ teams have split eight meetings over the past three seasons, with Brunson posting a -24 plus/minus in those matchups.
Last season, Daniels also boasted that Brunson wouldn’t want to see him as a defender, speaking of a developing on-court rivalry. The Knicks captain responded by averaging 31.6 points in their past five meetings. One game featured a Brunson game-winner over Daniels at the Garden. Another saw Brunson uncharacteristically taunt Daniels after the Hawks wing fouled out.
This season, Brunson has averaged 29.3 points and 7.7 assists in three games (two wins) against the Hawks but has struggled from the perimeter, hitting less than 30 percent of his 3s.
What’s happening on and off the Garden court
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“I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” Brunson said last year. “With trash talk or not, being competitive, that dude can hoop.” During the Knicks’ first conference finals run in a quarter-century, Brunson opened by torching Detroit’s Ausar Thompson, one of the league’s best athletes. In the second-round upset of the defending champion Celtics, Brunson handled Jrue Holiday, one of the best perimeter defenders of his era.
The best may bring out his best.
“They’ve been playing great,” Brunson said of the Hawks. “We’ve gotta be ready for the challenge. I’m definitely excited. I think it’s gonna be great for us and it’s gonna be a hard-fought battle.
“It’s not gonna be easy whatsoever.”
