Knicks' Jalen Brunson Continues Raising Playoff Durability Concerns

The New York Knicks have been defined by their odd-fitting starting lineup ever since Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges made the trips over to the team in their respective trades in 2024. Most impact numbers show that the starters aren't a particularly-successful quintet, but the band of franchise scorers and fringe-All-Stars can go toe-to-toe with any contenders around the league when they're right.

As enticing as the positions that those big names can put New York in are, they're nothing without Jalen Brunson's shot-making magic. He's demonstrated that much over three different playoff runs as a Knick, introducing his team to seven series over three years as a comfortable late-game leader with no shortage of confidence in elimination-based scenarios.

New York Knicks Guard Jalen Brunson — May 1, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) celebrates his three point basket in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons during game six of first round for the 2024 NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

But that athletic perimeter threat who sent the Detroit Pistons packing himself in the first round of last year's playoffs hasn't looked the same since the calendar flipped. He's averaging 23.6 nightly points on 45.4% from the field and 35.6% from behind the arc over his past 40 games since 2026 began, good numbers that can't support how much the rest of the Knicks look to Brunson to bail them out in every game.

Another postseason sits just weeks away from a Knicks team that's looking flimsier than ever now that their top option can't rule the clutch to that same degree. Brunson's caught regression speculation plenty of times this season due to doubts surrounding the little guard's ability to hold up through four physical rounds of playoff basketball, and those theories need addressing now more than ever before.

Factors Working Against Brunson

It's an inconvenient time for Brunson to be looking for his next contract extension, as the most popular 21st century Knick has already done plenty of favors for his franchise aside from his regular playoff outbursts. He took a big paycut to free up the organization's finances two summers ago, and he isn't looking to make that same sacrifice twice.

If there were ever a time to secure the generational wealth he's looking to bag, it would be this spring. The Eastern Conference is without a clear-cut favorite to move on past all of the other local competition, and his Knicks are spinning out of control amidst their lack of on-court leadership. This is where the point guard has repeatedly shown up to assert himself among the game's premier closers, but the diminished, weathered version of the Knicks' star can't meet that same mark quite so consistently.

After all, he'll be 30 years old by his next regular season debut, and scorers as small as Brunson who are tasked with carrying a load as heavy as his haven't often returned once they hit their respective cliff. Everyone else on his team, whether it's Towns, Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart or any of his other supplementary teammates, looks to him to take them home every time they're in a pinch, and those final March gasps may very well be a sign of the cracks that could widen entering April.

Brunson will get a break after being ruled out for New York's matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, but the team is rapidly running out of rope to spare for any low-stakes basketball. Brunson's durability worries can't be cooled in a day, but even if that were the case, all of their focus has to be geared towards righting the ship entering the playoffs.

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