Feb 14, 2026; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Team USA Stripes guard Jalen Brunson (11) of the New York Knicks during a news conference for the NBA All Star game at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Knicks Captain Shoulders More Responsibility Than Cade Cunningham

Originally posted on New York Knicks on SI
By Jayesh Pagar | Last updated Feb 17, 2026 6:00 PM ET

Former NBA champion and New York Knicks Iman Shumpert set up a discussion around how the leading point guards in the Eastern Conference have very different roles.

During his latest appearance, he said that Jalen Brunson is under a lot more pressure than Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons.

The Knicks have a 35-20 record, while the Pistons, who lead the Eastern Conference, have a 40-13 record. But according to Shumpert, the pressure on New York's star is far greater than that on Detroit's young franchise player.

"When I see the Detroit Pistons matching up with the New York Knicks at the end of the game, I'm trying to figure out how do you deal with Jalen Brunson and can you go back and forth making better decisions than he can in the fourth quarter," Shumpert explained.

"We've watched Jalen Brunson have to deal with way more of a load than Cade Cunningham has had to deal with."

The former Knick raised valid concerns about Cunningham's readiness.

"I expect the deciding factor to be can Cade Cunningham take care of the ball because we saw last year he struggled with that," Shumpert added.

Iman Shumpert says Jalen Brunson has to carry a bigger load than Cade Cunningham:

“When I see the Pistons matching up with the Knicks at the end of games I’m trying to figure out how you deal with Jalen Brunson and can you go back and forth in the 4th. We watch Jalen Brunson… pic.twitter.com/6B2bGNdtpe
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) February 17, 2026

The‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ stats alone don't tell the whole story. Brunson is averaging 27.0 points and 6.1 assists per game this season, whereas Cunningham is posting 25.3 points and 9.6 assists.

However, statistics don't really show the burden each player takes ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌on.

When Brunson Fails the Team Collapses

The‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ Knicks' heavy reliance on Brunson has cost them dearly. In the game against the Celtics in December, when he only made 6 of 21 shots, the Knicks lost 117-123 even though Mikal Bridges went off for 35 points.

"I didn’t do my team any type of service" Brunson admitted after the defeat.

In January, Detroit defeated New York 121-90 and quite visibly showed the flaws of the Knicks when Brunson is not capable of taking over the game.

Moreover, the Knicks were beaten by Sacramento 112-101 after Brunson twisted his ankle only four minutes after the game had ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌started.

Who Needs to Step Up

Karl-Anthony‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ Towns and Mikal Bridges need to step up and give an edge to the team with Brunson. There are times when Towns seems to be out of the play completely, whereas Bridges is mostly reliant on catch-and-shoot situations and finds it difficult to make his own shots.

OG Anunoby is to penetrate the lane more with dribbling and not just waiting for open jump shots to fall. If everything lines up it the Knicks will have a real shot in the Eastern Conference.

This article first appeared on New York Knicks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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