Jalen Brunson’s move from the Dallas Mavericks to the New York Knicks was arguably the biggest move in free agency this summer. While league-changing moves were made by the Minnesota Timberwolves and Cleveland Cavaliers by their acquisition of the old Utah Jazz duo of Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, they did it via trade and not in free agency like the Knicks with Brunson.
The rumors for the same had been circulating since before the 2022 trade deadline. The Knicks even hired Jalen’s father, Rick Brunson, to be an assistant coach at the end of the regular season. Due to the Knicks’ actions, the NBA is investigating them for tampering to acquire Brunson. Stefan Bondy has given an update on the situation with HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto during a podcast.
“The league has been investigating and has been for a while. At least one member of the Knicks’ organization has had their cell phone confiscated. It could be more, but I know of at least one. I’ve heard in a worst-case scenario the Knicks will have to give up a draft pick should the league find that they did something egregious.”
“To me, it’s a big-time gray area. Are you going to tell a father that he can’t talk to his son about his future? If I were the Knicks, I would’ve had [Jalen] Brunson talk to the press and say something along those lines.” (h/t Clutch Points)
Will The Knicks Be Punished For Tampering?
Tampering is an incredibly hard thing to prove for the NBA as ‘official contact’ is rarely made before the opening of the signing window. The factor that makes this situation so tough is the fact that Brunson’s father is on the Knicks staff.
The league can’t penalize the Knicks for what Rick Brunson might have said to Jalen because they can’t police conversations between a father and a son. The same goes for players who often discuss teaming up together in private, as the league has no right to interfere in those conversations.
Even if New York is found guilty, they will probably be docked a pick, either first-round or second-round. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has already said he’s let the situation go and doesn’t think the Knicks acted inappropriately, even when scouts from the team were scouting Brunson and Donovan Mitchell during the Mavericks-Jazz playoff series.
