Why Knicks must resist the urge to chase Kevin Durant in the offseason
Jalen Brunson’s return was triumphant where it mattered most — the scoreboard — but it was also clear evidence of rust the point guard had to remove before the playoffs.
Brunson appeared a step slow and hesitant with his shot in his first game since sustaining a badly sprained ankle a month ago, scoring 15 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field in 34 minutes while often deferring to scorching hot teammate OG Anunoby.
But Brunson, as his reputation precedes, came up big in the biggest spot, hitting his only trey with 1:45 remaining while dropping six points in the final two minutes.
The result against the lowly Suns was another Knicks victory, this one by 112-98, with Tom Thibodeau’s squad moving one win (or one Pacers loss) away from clinching third in the East.
“Could be better, could be worse. A lot of room for improvement on my end, obviously,” Brunson said.
The most encouraging part?
“I’m surprised by the conditioning,” he said. “I thought it would be a lot worse, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought.”
Brunson, who had missed 15 straight games, was greeted with a loud ovation during lineup introductions and followed with six assists and eight free throws.
He played more off the ball than usual until the fourth quarter, providing the oxygen for Anunoby to score 32 points on 13-of-17 shooting.
It was the 10th straight time Anunoby finished with at least 20 points — a career best.
And after a particularly productive run in the third quarter, he was serenaded with “OG, OG” chants before a nice ovation upon checking out.
Anunoby capped the performance with a 360-degree jam in the final minute.
“Dunk-a-noby,” Miles McBride called him.
Just like a night prior in Atlanta, the Knicks (50-28) were efficient from beyond the arc — hitting 12 of their 28 treys (43 percent).
They led throughout, but never created enough separation to feel too comfortable.
Despite shooting just 12 percent on 3s for the night, the Suns, behind Devin Booker’s 40 points, cut the deficit to five with about three minutes remaining.
Then Brunson helped turn away the comeback.
“Usually what happens when a guy comes back, he has to get a feel for the game again,” Thibodeau said. “And then there’s a play or two where he’ll be tested a little bit.
“And then once he realizes he’s good, he takes off and I thought the whole second half there was a different gear for him. And that’s to be expected.”
The Suns, amid a disaster of a season, were a soft landing for Brunson’s return.
They arrived at MSG without Kevin Durant, who didn’t travel because of a sprained ankle and is probably headed to another team in the summer.
A source said there will be no shortage of suitors in the summer for Durant, despite his advanced age and injury history.
The Knicks reportedly showed interest before the trade deadline, but they’re also depleted of draft capital after giving up five first-rounders for Mikal Bridges.
The Suns (35-43) will be highly motivated to deal Durant given their unenviable circumstances. They still have Bradley Beal, who will soon surpass Ben Simmons as owner of the NBA’s worst contract relative to production.
They are in the second apron of the luxury tax, depleted of draft picks with no path to improvement beyond rebuilding.
The Knicks, meanwhile, were fully healthy Sunday following not only the return of Brunson, but also McBride (who hadn’t played since March 20 because of a groin issue).
They got in important reps, with none more important than Brunson’s on the way to rediscovering his rhythm.
“Right now, it’s more his timing. [Brunson’s] got to play. There’s no way around that,” Thibodeau said. “He practiced well the other day, but the intensity of practice can never be replicated to what the game is.”