Knicks' Jalen Brunson Receives Major Praise from Mavericks Legend

Jalen Brunson's performance with the New York Knicks has caught the attention of a former teammate and Dallas Mavericks legend.

Dec 13, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) reacts as Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) walks away during the third quarter at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

New York Knicks superstar point guard Jalen Brunson has been putting on a show once again during the 2025-26 NBA season.

His most recent achievement was helping the team advance in the Emirates NBA Cup for the first time. The Knicks have advanced beyond Pool Play in all three years the tournament has been in existence, but they have never won an elimination game.

That was, of course, until this year. New York defeated the Toronto Raptors 117-101 in the quarterfinals, earning a spot in the semifinals in Las Vegas against the Orlando Magic. In a high-scoring affair, the Knicks came away victorious, 132-120.

Leading the way in the semifinal matchup was Brunson, who made history by scoring 40 points. That is the most points scored by a player in an NBA Cup semifinal or final game.

Jalen Brunson Receives Praise From Dirk Nowitzki

Aug 10, 2024; Paris, France; Dirk Nowitzki looks on during the men's basketball bronze medal game between Serbia and Germany during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Accor Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

After the performance, the superstar point guard was rightfully receiving a lot of praise. His head coach, Mike Brown, was questioning why Brunson’s name isn’t brought up more frequently during NBA MVP discussions.

His former teammate, Dirk Nowitzki, also showered him with praise. The Dallas Mavericks legend, who is now part of the studio team for Amazon Prime’s NBA games, had nothing but positive things to say about the two-time All-Star.

Nowitzki admitted he wasn’t sure it was the best decision to leave the Mavericks for New York, but he is thrilled to have been proven wrong. He shared how proud he is of Brunson for not only turning into the player he is today, but also leading the turnaround for a franchise that was in such dire straits.

"When you left for New York I wasn't sure…I'm super proud of you. I saw how hard you work, how much it means to you, how much time you put in when nobody's watching…I'm so happy the way you're leading this franchise"

–– Dirk Nowitzki to former Mavs teammate Jalen Brunson pic.twitter.com/Ja0hSls9G3

— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) December 14, 2025

In the two seasons he has been with the Knicks, Brunson has helped the team win three playoff series. The rest of the century, before he joined the franchise, New York had four playoff series wins.

In the first season under head coach Mike Brown, his star point guard has not only elevated his own performance, but that of the team. A .720 winning percentage has been recorded thus far in the 2025-26 campaign, which is second best in the Eastern Conference and tied for the fifth best mark in the NBA.

Brunson is averaging 28.8 points per game, which would be a career-high, on a .487/.376/.838 shoot split. He has added 6.4 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 0.7 steals in 35.1 minutes per game to round out his stat line.

All the praise that he is on the receiving end of has been warranted, rapidly turning around a downtrodden franchise into a legitimate contender.

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