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Knicks' Jalen Brunson Reps Team USA Before 4 Nations Final

New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson donned red, white, and blue in support of the United States' championship run in the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Geoff Maggliocchetti|
Feb 3, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) dribbles up court during the second half against the Houston Rockets at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Feb 3, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) dribbles up court during the second half against the Houston Rockets at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

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All-American athletic heroes will face a red rival on Thursday night—but enough about the New York Knicks' tilt with the Chicago Bulls (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG).

Though the Knicks (36-18) return to action from the All-Star break on Thursday with a good number of their NBA brethren, the most anticipated event on the daily sports calendar is the inaugural 4 Nations Face-Off's championship hockey game between star teams consisting of National Hockey League talents and representing the United States and Canada (8 p.m. ET, ESPN).

The Knicks will be missing out thanks to the Bulls' visit, but captain Jalen Brunson offered his support to both Team USA and New York's Madison Square Garden co-tenant: recording his arrival to MSG, the Knicks' social media channels shared video of Brunson adorned in a Team USA jersey bearing the surname of defenseman Adam Fox, who plays for the NHL's New York Rangers.

The 4 Nations Face-Off is a new in-season event the NHL has staged in lieu of an All-Star Game. As its named implies, it gathered four national teams with the continental rivals joined by Finland and Sweden.

The event comes a year before NHL players are set to partake in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, their first such appearance since the 2014 Games in Russia. Some critics have called for the NBA to adopt a similar format to its own in-season hiatus after the newest tweak to the All-Star Game (a four-team tournament featuring three "drafted" teams, the winner of the Rising Stars competition, and untimed games that played to 40 points) generated mostly negative reviews.

Amidst political tensions between the United States and Canada, their NHL stars have staged equally testy stand-offs on the ice: when the teams did battle in round robin play on Saturday in Montreal, three fights broke out within the first nine seconds of play.

When order was restored, goals for Jake Guentzel sandwiched the winner from Dylan Larkin in a 3-1 victory for the United States. That win clinched the Americans' spot in Thursday championship game in Boston while Canada punched its own ticket with a 5-3 win over Finland on Monday afternoon.

Brunson has experience on Team USA, as he, Josh Hart, and others repped the stars and stripes during the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Asia.

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Geoff Magliocchetti
GEOFF MAGGLIOCCHETTI

Geoff Magliocchetti is a veteran sportswriter who contributes to a variety of sites on the "On SI" network. In addition to the Yankees/Mets, Geoff also covers the New York Knicks, New York Liberty, and New York Giants and has previously written about the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Staten Island Yankees, and NASCAR.

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