Superstar guard Jalen Brunson once again proved why he’s the NBA’s “Clutch Player of the Year” in the Knicks‘ 121-113 victory over the Celtics in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on May 12.
Brunson finished with 39 points and 12 assists, including eight fourth-quarter points, to guide his team to a 3-1 series lead over the defending NBA champions.
The performance was the latest instance of Brunson carrying the Knicks in the fourth quarter. Through 10 games in the 2025 NBA playoffs, the southpaw has 102 points in the fourth quarter, the most by any player in the league by a wide margin.
As a result, Brunson has matched the feat of the late, great Kobe Bryant, who tallied over 100 fourth-quarter points in two separate playoff runs in 2001 and 2003. Per the NBA, Brunson is just the second player after Bryant to achieve the feat.
Already a Knicks Legend?
Jalen Brunson has been a model of consistency since joining the Knicks in the 2022 offseason. The Villanova alum already has eight 40-point games and 12 35-point games in the playoffs, making him one of the greatest Knicks scorers in history.
Brunson already has six games in the playoffs with at least 30 points and 10 assists, which is four more than Walt Frazier and five more than Patrick Ewing.
Furthermore, according to the Real Sports App, Brunson has logged the most 35-point games in the NBA playoffs since joining the Knicks three years ago.
With 17 30-point games in the playoffs, Brunson is just one shy of tying Ewing for the franchise record. That record could be one of many he secures ultimately.
Set To Break Every Knicks Record?
According to retired players Quentin Richardson and Jalen Rose, Brunson is on pace to break every Knicks franchise record.
“He’s gonna run away with all of the Knicks records,” Richardson said on NBA TV’s “Gametime” on May 12. “The way he’s able to play, and he’s allowed to play for them, he’s gonna wipe everything out.”
Rose chimed in, “I totally agree. And watching how he performs, for one of us who played in New York and knows about and-one basketball, New York point guards have always been about flash and dash. It’s almost an oxymoron to watch Jalen Brunson perform the way he does, and still puts up the numbers in a spectacular fashion.”
“It’s a joy to watch him play. He’s unstoppable in the fourth quarter, and he’s having a remarkable season,” Rose added of Brunson.
