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Knicks star Jalen Brunson refuses to take bait on Celtics question

Originally posted on NBA on ClutchPoints
By Jackson Stone | Last updated May 6, 2025 2:05 PM ET

On Monday evening, the New York Knicks rallied from 20 points down to shock the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their second round series. The Knicks were led by 29 points from Jalen Brunson, who hit several clutch shots late in the fourth quarter to help get the game to overtime, where New York eventually pulled away.

Not many experts gave the Knicks a chance to be competitive, let alone win, in this series against the Celtics, and after the game, Brunson was asked by a reporter whether he had a message for the doubters after the win.

Predictably, Brunson did not take the bait.

“No,” Brunson replied, per Knicks Videos on X, formerly Twitter.

The Knicks also got 29 points from OG Anunoby, who hit a three pointer with under a minute left in the fourth quarter when the team was trailing by one.

A shocking win for the Knicks

While 20-point comebacks happen quite frequently in the NBA today, it was still shocking to see just how quickly the Knicks were able to flip the switch against a team that looked far superior to them for most of the evening (and throughout all of their matchups this season, for that matter).

It helped that the Celtics had a historically poor shooting night from beyond the arc, setting the record for most missed threes in a playoff game at 45. The Knicks shouldn’t be banking on Boston to continue missing some of the open looks that they bricked on Monday evening.

Still, the Knicks have reason for optimism in their own right (beyond obviously the fact that they won the game) in that Karl-Anthony Towns spent much of the night in foul trouble, Brunson wasn’t particularly efficient for the first three quarters, and they were still able to find a way to win.

Up next, the Knicks will try to get greedy and steal another road game in Boston on Wednesday evening before the series shifts to New York City. That game is slated to tip off at 7:00 PM ET and will once again be carried nationally by TNT.

This article first appeared on NBA on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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