Jalen Brunson Assesses Return to Knicks

It wasn't exactly full steam ahead for the New York Knicks' captain but his presence on deck was nonetheless a welcome sight.

Jalen Brunson returned to action for the Knicks on Sunday, the one-month anniversary of the ankle injury that cost him 15 games. Ironically enough, Brunson put in 15 points in the Knicks' 112-98 win over the Phoenix Suns at Madison Square Garden.

“When he gets to put that jersey on, we all get fired up,” fellow Knicks headliner Karl-Anthony Towns said of Brunson, per Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News. “It’s great to see him back out there.”

A somewhat tepid Brunson (3-of-9, 1-of-4 from three-point range) let others have the spotlight in his first night back but public address announcer Mike Walczewski's declaration that he would start for New York at point guard no doubt drew the loudest cheers of the night. Brunson was blunt in his postgame self-assessment ("Could be better, could be worse"), countering a quiet shooting night with content over his conditioning.

“A lot of room for improvement on my end, obviously, but I’m surprised at the conditioning part. I thought that would be a lot worse," Brunson said, per Winfield. "“Everyone always talks about the physical part, about how you’re feeling and whatever, but mentally, it’s just trusting … your movements, trusting the way you play and everything, and not second-guessing yourself. That was the biggest adjustment, but I’m feeling a lot better.”

Brunson afforded the headlines to Towns and Mikal Bridges in the first half, as that duo scored 27 while he was 1-of-3 from the field. Brunson dished out three assists and went to the foul line four times but he also lost three turnovers (including one forced by fellow Villanova champion Collin Gillespie, who had three steals on the night).

Glimpses of the Brunson that Knicks fans have come to know and love emerged as the game went on: he took a charge, sank a successful and-one early in the third quarter, and his lone successful three-pointer gave the Knicks a double-figure lead in the penultimate officially dimmed a Suns comeback.

Brunson played just over 34 minutes in his return to action, fewest among the Knick starters. He did dish out six assists, tying for the team lead with fellow returnee Cameron Payne.

“Once he realizes he’s good, he takes off. I thought the whole second half, there was a different gear for him," Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau noted, per Winfield. "If there’s fatigue, he’ll tell us. [The training staff was] watching him pretty closely, and he put a lot of time into the conditioning aspect. Right now, it’s more his timing, so he’s got to play. There’s no other way around that.”

Brunson has four more opportunities to get his land legs back, starting with Tuesday's visit from the Boston Celtics (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT).

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