New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson acknowledged that his team was capable of playing better basketball, even after taking a 3-1 lead in the series against the Boston Celtics. While discussing the performance in Game 4 with the media, Brunson said:
“It was a sense of urgency, desperation,” said Brunson, acknowledging the loss in Game 3 before addressing their latest win. “Just knowing that we have a great opportunity. We’re playing a really good team, and I don’t even think we’re playing our best basketball yet.”
“The team is fairly new this year, and we still have a long way we can go to be the best that we can be,” he continued. “It’s always time to learn for us. So we’ve just got to make sure that we’re never satisfied and just having that student mentality.”
Brunson’s motivation and greed for success are commendable. The Knicks have certainly thrived behind this mindset as they continue to make a stellar run through the playoffs. Although the team suffered a setback after a relatively underwhelming performance in Game 3 against the Celtics, New York bounced back with a dominant showing in Game 4.
The 121-113 win sees the Knicks take absolute control of the series as it heads back to Boston. Brunson shone bright for his team on Monday night with a team-high 39 points. He masterfully facilitated the team’s offense with 12 assists on the night as well.
The guard’s efforts were supported closely by his teammates. Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns recorded 23 points each. Meanwhile, OG Anunoby contributed 20 points of his own to the winning effort.
Brunson’s brilliance lies not in his ability to score, but in his ability to gauge the situation and understand when the team needs those points the most. The two-time All-Star racked up a quick six points at the end of the third to draw his team level, and this made all the difference.
Boston has displayed a habitual difficulty with adapting to the Knicks’ intensity down the stretch. Although they saw a heroic performance by Jayson Tatum to keep their hopes of winning alive, the Celtics saw everything fall apart after their star went down with an apparent ankle injury late in the fourth quarter.
Tatum’s 42-point onslaught was not enough to see the Celtics through to a win on the road. The lack of support was telling of the situation. Although Derrick White and Jaylen Brown contributed 23 points and 20 points, respectively, the rest of the roster was disappointing on the night.
The Knicks are in a solid position to close things out in Game 5 in Boston. Although the road conditions should have posed a challenge for New York under any logical circumstances, the team has already established how comfortable they are in the TD Garden.
With the game set to take place on Wednesday at 7:00 pm ET, the Knicks will aim to secure their spot in the Eastern Conference Finals.
