Jalen Brunson is the face of the New York Knicks, and he has the team in a position to once again make it back to the playoffs for the second straight year. Only this time, the Knicks have a real chance to make a deep playoff push due to their depth and Brunson's breakout, MVP-like campaign.
In the midst of Julius Randle being ruled out for the remainder of the year due to right shoulder surgery, Brunson has kept the Knicks afloat. He currently ranks fourth in scoring this season and is looking to take the Knicks from the 5-seed, where they currently stand, possibly all the way up to the 2-seed in the East before the conclusion of the regular season on April 14. Regardless of how this season and postseason play out for the Knicks, Brunson will enter the offseason with some slight question marks regarding his future.
When Brunson joined the Knicks in 2022, he signed a four-year, $104 million contract that decreases in value over the first three years of the deal. Obviously outplaying the value that was put on him when he first signed with New York, Brunson will be eligible for a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension with the Knicks starting on July 12, according to ESPN front office insider Bobby Marks. However, he won't be super max eligible, regardless if he makes an All-NBA team, because he joined the organization as a free agent.
The fact of the matter is that the Knicks are going to want to keep Brunson for the foreseeable future, and the first-time All-Star shouldn't have much of a reason to want to leave New York. This is why the idea of Brunson earning a new extension in the offseason is something the two sides will almost definitely discuss. In fact, it already seems like there is mutual interest in a possible contract extension for the 27-year-old.
“I've heard whispers that Brunson would be open to discussions to do [an extension] this summer,” Steve Popper of Newsday Sports said on SNY's The Putback with Knicks and Brooklyn Nets reporter Ian Begley.
Next season, Brunson will make just about $25 million with the Knicks. He will then have a decision to make, as Brunson owns a near $25 million player option for the 2025-26 season. As a result of his level of play, the Knicks star guard is in line to see a massive raise in the near future.
Jalen Brunson's All-NBA season
There is no other word to describe this season for Brunson other than fantastic. Just a few years ago, Brunson was coming off the bench for the Dallas Mavericks. Now, he is the focal point of the Knicks and has turned this franchise into one that can contend against the best of the best in the Eastern Conference.
In a total of 70 games, Brunson has averaged 27.8 points, 6.6 assists, and 3.6 rebounds per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the floor and 39.7 percent from three-point range. The 61 points Brunson recently scored against the San Antonio Spurs on March 29 are the sixth-most any player has recorded in a game this season.
At this point, it shouldn't come as a shock if Brunson is named to one of the three All-NBA teams. Due to the league changing the rules for All-NBA selections, both from a positionless standpoint and a 65-game minimum standpoint, Brunson's odds of making the All-NBA First Team or All-NBA Second Team are exceptionally high.
As long as he remains healthy, the Knicks will have a chance to win any game they play. Brunson has turned himself into one of the best one-on-one players in the league, which is why the team is going to want to keep the 27-year-old around for many more years to come.
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