How is Knicks star Jalen Brunson’s ankle feeling? 5 words sum it up

Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks came just two wins away from reaching the NBA Finals in the 2024-25 NBA season, as they got eliminated from the postseason by Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers.

Despite another failure in their mission to not just reach the playoffs but win the franchise’s first NBA title since 1973, the Knicks should continue to be among the chief contenders for the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the coming 2025-26 NBA campaign.

And a lot of that depends on how well Brunson will play in his eighth year in the league. But before anything else, Brunson has to be healthy. Last season, he played in only 65 games, as he missed a bunch of contests due to an ankle injury he sustained during a March game versus LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in LA.

Even when he returned to action, there was constant concern about Jalen Brunson’s ankle.

Brunson, however, has given an assurance that his ankle is 100 percent ready for the upcoming season.

“No setbacks. I feel great,” Brunson said during Tuesday’s Knicks media day, per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic.

Brunson is widely regarded as the Knicks’ best player, which is saying a lot, considering New York also has the likes of big man Karl-Anthony Towns and forwards OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges, plus a do-it-all guard in Josh Hart.

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks in the 2024-25 season with an average of 26.0 points while dishing out 7.3 assists and grabbing 2.9 rebounds per game. The former Villanova Wildcats star also turned it on in the 2025 NBA Playoffs, where he put up averages of 29.4 points, 7.0 assists and 3.4 rebounds while shooting 46.1 percent from the field and 35.8 percent from behind the arc.

Aside from his health, another intriguing narrative to follow about Brunson is his fit under a new head coach. Mike Brown, a two-time NBA Coach of the Year winner, has been named as Tom Thibodeau’s successor. There are adjustments to be made for Brunson and his teammates with Brown’s arrival, so it will be interesting to see how the game’s flow will change for New York.