New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson has been a godsend for the franchise. Despite not earning a spot on the NBA All-Star team, he played up to that level throughout the season, helping get the Knicks into the postseason for only the second time in 10 years.
In the team’s first-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Brunson was magnificent. He consistently outplayed Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell, both of whom have been All-Stars before. Heading into the semifinal series against the Miami Heat, optimism was high.
Unfortunately for Brunson and the Knicks, things didn’t get off on the right foot. New York dropped Game 1 on Sunday afternoon 108-101. They were thoroughly outplayed in the second half, as the Heat quickly erased a five-point halftime lead and took control in the third quarter.
A big reason for Miami being able to pull away in the second half was the uncharacteristic performance by Brunson. After the game, he took responsibility for the team falling short and said that he has to play better.
“There were key moments in the game where you need to finish strong, be strong, and that starts with me,” Brunson said. “Today I was horrific. Just very uncharacteristic by me and this one’s on me. I gotta be better.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks & Miami Heat Updates
Brunson scored 25 points in the game, but it was far from his most efficient game. While he found success on 2-point attempts, he went 0-for-7 on 3-pointers. It was already the second time this postseason Brunson missed all of his 3-point attempts after doing it only 10 times in the regular season.
“Inside the three-point line I was pretty efficient, outside the three-point line I was terrible,” said Brunson.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks & Miami Heat Updates
The Heat’s game plan was to dare the Knicks to shoot from the perimeter to beat them, and for one game, it worked. 3-point shooting was the difference in the game as Miami was 13-of-39, making timely ones to gain momentum in the second half.
As a team, the Knicks struggled from long distance. They made only 20.6 percent of their attempts, going 7-of-34. Obi Toppin was the only player to make multiple 3-pointers in the game for New York, going 4-of-11.
‘They’re a good team, great defensively, well coached, experienced. So you gotta give them credit, but for me, I have to be better,’ Brunson said.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks & Miami Heat Updates
Miami was one of the best defensive teams in the NBA during the regular season and showed their chops in the first round, eliminating the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks. New York is going to have to make some adjustments, but Brunson returning to the mean with his 3-point shooting percentage would do wonders for getting the Knicks back on track.
“We can’t be discouraged,” Brunson said. “Playing in the NBA, a lot of it’s all confidence, and you got to stay confident, you got to stay poised and you got to stick together as a team. We just got to come back hungry, be better, fix our mistakes and move forward from there.”
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