Things come full circle for Rick, Jalen Brunson in Madison Square Garden

NEW YORK – In the early 2000s, a young Jalen Brunson used to hold a basketball while watching his father, Rick, go through his warmups on the iconic Madison Square Garden floor. 

More than two decades later, the father and son have switched roles. 

Jalen Brunson went through his pregame routine Friday night (Saturday Manila time) with his father watching and passing the ball to him. They had done this a thousand times since he was young, but this was unlike any ordinary day. 

It was Brunson’s first official game as a member of the Knicks, the team he grew up rooting for when his father played for them as a reserve guard. 

The father and son were all business. 

“It’s the same approach every single time. So, when I’m on the court, no matter who I'm with or what [team] I'm playing against, obviously, I’m adjusting to a new team and new teammates, but the approach stays the same – whatever it takes to win every single time I stepped up on the court. That's how it is.”

Brunson did just like that. 

He led by example, diving for a loose ball that went into the crowd. He dropped several Pistons guards on the floor on his way to an efficient 17-point game home debut as New York cruised to a 130-106 rout of Detroit for its first win of the season. 

Jalen Brunson got Jaden Ivey on skates pic.twitter.com/40tu4ZZ7Zu

— KNICKS ON MSG (@KnicksMSGN) October 22, 2022

His fundamentally sound footwork floored his defenders. 

“I think a lot of it comes from my dad. As I've grown older, I learned from several coaches at my high school coach, college coach, and so forth, just picking pieces from a lot of different players, and I tried to make it my own. I just try and find ways to add things like that, and I just somehow got good at it and tried to master it,” Brunson told Philstar.com when asked about his craftiness around the rim. 

His father was a bruiser but also a cerebral player in his days – traits he inherited and enhanced to reach greater success. 

Rick once had a 12-assist game against the Miami Heat in 1999.

In 1998, the year before he returned to the NBA via Knicks, Rick had a one-game stint as a PBA import.  

Jalen was too young to remember when his father once played for Gordon’s Gin (now Brgy. Ginebra), the most popular team in the Philippines. 

In his lone PBA game, Rick produced 21 points, five rebounds and seven assists, but his efforts, along with Kenny Payne’s 37 and 10, were not enough to save Gordon’s Gin from elimination.  

Jalen has been a better version of his father. 

In his first two games as the Knicks’ new lead guard, Jalen dished out 15 assists without a single turnover, becoming the first NBA player to do it this season.  

“[Brunson] has a great understanding of the game, and I think that's probably the most important thing,” Thibodeau said, “and I think how you manage and control the game is another strength. But usually, when you analyze turnovers, they fall into one of two categories. They're either risky passes that you try to thread the needle or you're going too much one-on-one, and he has a great feel for when to go and when to pass. He’s always scanning and reading the floor.”

“So often, and he knows that there's a good matchup if there's something going on, he could put you at a disadvantage to create the advantage. And that's where his mind is probably his greatest asset. And so, and he's always been that way, he's that way in high school in college. He's been that way and pros, and the game's not too big for him. I think. We all saw that the way he played in the playoffs last year, the bigger the game, the better he plays.”

Brunson’s breakout season with the Dallas Mavericks helped land him a $104 million, four-year contract with the Knicks in the offseason. He became the first second-round pick to sign a six-figure deal in NBA history. 

Despite his NBA and championship pedigree (he won two US NCAA championships with Villanova), Brunson was overlooked in the 2018 NBA Draft. 

Through sheer hard work, he climbed his way to become a top-20 point guard in the league. And at the rate he’s going, it’s just a matter of time before he breaks into the top 10. 

Thibodeau called Brunson’s leadership a calming influence. 

He’s brought stability to the Knicks' backcourt after a revolving door of point guards. 

On his special night, his childhood hero-turned-backup Derrick Rose made sure the Pistons would not spoil his home debut. 

Rose sparked the Knicks’ second unit with 13 points and six assists, effectively backing up Brunson, who used to rebound ball for him during his prime years in Chicago. 

“It's special. It's very special. Here’s one story: one of my best friends in high school said, ' if you'd have told me that you’re teammates with Derrick Rose 10 years down the line or 10 years ago, I would have slapped you. So, it's pretty cool, pretty special. But he's been great. I'm trying to learn as much as I can from him, and he’s Derrick Rose. That's pretty self-explanatory,” Brunson said. 

Brunson has a great mentor in his father. And an even more outstanding mentor in Rose, the youngest MVP in league history.

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Alder Almo is a former senior sportswriter for Philstar.com and NBA.com Philippines. He is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and writes for the New York-based sports website empiresportsmedia.com.