Jalen Brunson lit up the Raptors on Tuesday night as the Knicks punched their ticket to the Emirates NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas. He erupted for 20 in the opening quarter and finished with 35, setting the tone as New York put six players in double figures on another strong night for a team that has surged since late November.

Josh Hart followed suit with 21 points, plus rebounds, assists and two steals to round out a complete performance. His name surfaced in a different way once the game ended. The studio crew brought up the offseason moment when Hart discovered that $185,000 in watches and jewelry had vanished from his hotel room. Taylor Rooks mentioned that Brunson received write-in votes for New York mayor and reminded him that Hart once joked about him being terrible at the job.

Brunson wasted no time jumping in, per SI. “If I was mayor, whoever stole Josh’s watches in New York City, I would make sure they walk free,” he said as everyone cracked up. Only real friends can mix humor with a story like that without any tension. Their back and forth felt like a bit born from years of chemistry.

Article Continues Below

Brunson reacts to votes for mayor

Brunson also addressed the unexpected twist of actually earning 27 write-in votes during the recent election. No other New York City athlete pulled that off, and he acknowledged that he knew about the support even if he never considered running.

“I did see that,” Brunson said. “At this point in my life, no, I would not consider running for mayor.” Reporters pressed him about whether he had a platform. Brunson just shook his head and smiled as the room laughed.

“I’m going to focus on basketball,” he said. “We have a great fanbase, it’s funny, it’s cool to see, but I’m going to stay in my lane.”