Knicks' Mike Brown Shuts Down Narrative About Jalen Brunson's Defense

It's always nice when there is a coach quick to vouch for you as the star player. The New York Knicks' 129-97 win over the Portland Trail Blazers made it five victories in a row for them, and head coach Mike Brown made sure to give his team credit collectively, but also didn’t mind giving credit to certain players individually, like his All-Star point guard Jalen Brunson.

When asked about the misconception of Brunson's deficiencies defensively, Brown quickly shut down that narrative.

"Jalen's a good defender. Obviously, a lot of people sleep on that, and I don't know why they have for years," Brown said, per a video from SNY.

The Knicks have been elite defensively as a team recently. During their current winning streak, they have held four of their last five opponents to under 100 points and have a defensive rating of 94.3. Brown, a defensive-minded, tough coach, has been preaching for much of the season that they have to improve their defense.

Brunson has taken defense personally during the winning streak

Brunson, at 6’1", is considered an undersized point guard. However, there are ways to overcome that obstacle by playing strong and smart, and by relying on your teammates to be in position. Brown said Brunson has done a good job, “leading with his chest”, which keeps him more balanced while keeping the offensive player in front of him when guarding man-to-man on defense. With Brunson being a physical point guard, he has the advantage against opposing offensive point guards.

screw it, Jalen Brunson defensive highlights pic.twitter.com/5yxbpQuWK0
— KnicksNation (@KnicksNation) December 29, 2024

Team defense starts with the “point of attack” defender, which basically means whoever is bringing the basketball up on offense. For the Knicks, that tends to be Mikal Bridges or Josh Hart.

During the winning streak, though, Brunson has made his emphasis clear, guarding his man head-up, fighting over screens, and getting steals on the help side. When your ball-dominant scoring point guard is holding up his end defensively, then that means there are no “weak links” on the court. That has been the driving force for the Knicks as of late.

Jan 30, 2026; New York, New York, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Jrue Holiday (5) controls the ball against New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) during the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Dealing with the reality of Brunson being undersized

With that said, there are times when certain players are going to have their way offensively no matter what the defense does. It becomes even more of a reality at the point guard position, where the league is filled with players who can score at a high rate.

Even with a backcourt player like Bridges, who is a solid two-way player, offensive guards who are good to great scorers with more size than Brunson will look to attack him.

Surviving Jalen Brunson's defense when he's performing like THIS is almost impossible. pic.twitter.com/8X9BYaKecp
— DJ Zullo (@DJAceNBA) January 7, 2026

The Knicks have to face the reality that Brunson's height and lack of athleticism are a hurdle they will need to overcome. So while Brown is correct in that Brunson is a willing defender who plays with grit and has stuck to the defensive principles the coaching staff has implemented, it still can be exploited.

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