The Knicks’ Jalen Brunson makes one big shot after another. It’s part of the reason New York calls him “Captain Clutch.”

But how did the current “King of New York” ascend to the top?  

"Well, in order to discover the origins of Jalen Brunson with the Knicks, I think you have to go back to long before Jalen Brunson was anywhere near the Knicks,” said Fred Katz, a senior NBA writer for The Athletic. 

Brunson did grow up near the sport, or more accurately, inside it. His father, Rick Brunson, played for the Knicks from 1998 to 2000 — and was a part of the ’99 Knicks team that made it to the NBA Finals.  

Jalen Brunson wasn’t even 3 years old.  

"Jalen Brunson was so young when he met Tom Thibodeau, so young when he met Leon Rose, that he literally doesn't even remember meeting them, because he was too young to form memories,” Katz said. “That's how long he's known all of the people involved in this organization.”

Brunson first became a star at Stevenson High School in Chicago, where he led his team to a state title and was named "Illinois Mr. Basketball." 

In his three years playing college ball, he became one of the most accomplished players in Villanova history.  

In his final season, Brunson was named national Player of the Year, and led Nova to an NCAA Championship. 

Feeling his work there was done, he declared for the NBA draft.

“Still ended up being a second-round pick after all of that,” Katz said. He was drafted 33rd overall by the Dallas Mavericks.  

"He didn't play a lot as a rookie," Katz said. "He got benched in his first time in the playoffs with the Mavs."

Overlooked and undervalued going into the 2021-2022 season, Brunson was eligible for a four-year, $55 million extension, below what he was worth. But Dallas never made him the offer.  

Brunson responded with a breakout season, but by then, the wheels were already in motion. In June, the Knicks hired Rick Brunson as an assistant coach.

On draft night, the Knicks made moves to offload money so they could afford him. One week later?

“Knicks come in with a four-year, $104 million offer, Brunson takes it, Dallas never really makes any sort of material offer at all, and Brunson goes to the Knicks,” Katz said. 

But immediately, the deal was slammed.  

Once again, Brunson responded to the noise. In his first year in New York, he led the Knicks to a fifth-place finish in the East — up from 11th the year prior.  

And he has taken the Knicks to the postseason every year since he’s been in New York — a team, mind you, that only made one playoff appearance in the nine years before he arrived.

And then in 2024, he was named an All-Star.  

Head coach Mike Brown's first encounters with Brunson were as an opposing coach. Even he underestimated him.

“I remember the first couple of times we played against him, we put a guard on him, and I was amazed — ‘cause when you look at him, you’re like, 'OK, he’s not the biggest guy, he’s not the most athletic guy, he’s not the quickest guy,'" Brown once told reporters. 

Brown said the next time?

“My concern wasn’t Luka, my concern was Jalen,” he said. “He’s been a problem in this league for a long time.”   

Katz said Brunson has “got this sort of psychopathic competitiveness to him.” That’s a compliment. 

“This little sort of Kobe gene,” Katz explained. 

He's also gifted with the leadership gene.  

“The top guy on the team sets the culture for the team, and then there's a trickle down from there,” Katz said. “And I think it's not a coincidence that they, as a team, have the same personality as their best player.”

A team — and a city — in a place they haven’t been in 27 years, all thanks to an "undersized," "unathletic" second-round pick.