Jalen Brunson just dropped 45 points to win the Knicks their first championship in 53 years. His own father will not put him above Patrick Ewing in the Knicks pantheon.
Rick Brunson sat down with Inside the NBA after Saturday night’s title-clinching win and was asked to weigh in on the Greatest Knick of All Time debate. His answer was simple. “Patrick Ewing is the best Knick I ever witnessed,” he said.
That is a respectable take. It is also one of the wildest things a parent of a Finals MVP could say within minutes of the championship trophy ceremony.
Rick Brunson played seven NBA seasons and now works as a Knicks assistant coach. He coached his son in New York. He sat on that bench every game this season. He had a front-row seat for the run that just ended in a Larry O’Brien trophy. And his answer when the moment got there was to crown Ewing instead.
The reasoning is fair. Patrick Ewing was the franchise for 15 years. He went to a Finals. He played at an All-NBA level for the better part of a decade. He carried the franchise on his shoulders during eras when the roster around him was thin and the playoff path was brutal. The Knicks made the playoffs 13 of his 15 seasons. Ewing is a Hall of Famer, a 1992 Olympic gold medalist, and one of the 75 greatest players in NBA history.
The case for Jalen is the obvious one. He just delivered a ring. The franchise had been waiting since 1973 for someone to do that, and Brunson is the one who finished the job. He won Finals MVP. He scored 45 points in Game 5. He has been the heartbeat of the team that finally broke the drought. Counting rings, Brunson is already ahead of Ewing in the only category that the Knicks fan base has been measuring its players against for half a century.
Rick Brunson chose continuity. He chose the long body of work. He chose the player whose face was on the franchise long before his son ever showed up.
It is a striking moment because dads are usually the last people willing to admit anyone is better than their kid, especially in public. Rick Brunson is built differently. He clearly meant it.
Jalen, for what it is worth, has never put himself above the legends. He has consistently talked about Ewing, John Starks, and Walt Frazier with reverence. He has carried himself like a player who knows the history of the building he plays in. The Brunson family has been Knicks-pilled for years, and they understand exactly what that pantheon means.
The actual answer to the debate is probably that you cannot have one. Ewing is the greatest Knick by longevity and production. Brunson is the greatest Knick by clutch moments and championships won. Both can be true.
Rick Brunson just decided to be honest about his vote. That is the most New York thing he could have done.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
