Jalen Brunson probably won't take his relatively brief stint at the 2025 NBA All-Star Game personally: the New York Knicks point guard has greater — and more golden — aspirations in mind.
Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns are coming home with their All-Star duties fulfilled, as they'll continue their 2024-25 season on Thursday when they Chicago Bulls visit Madison Square Garden (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG). The point guard was asked about the Knicks' championship chances in the lead-up to Sunday's main event, particularly how they stand with fellow elected All-Star starter Towns in tow.
"I think we've grown over the year, and obviously that's a goal of ours. But we have a long way to go," Brunson said, per notes from the League. "Obviously, it starts with me and KAT. But the team that we have, everyone is bought in. Everyone wants to win. Everyone has that as their goal. As long as we have that as our focus, it's definitely a possibility."
Brunson has no doubt flipped the Knicks' on-floor fortunes since coming to Manhattan in 2022, guiding them to consecutive playoff appearances and visits to the conference semifinals. With Towns in tow, expectations were raised higher than ever and the Knicks (36-18) have, for the most part, responded well.
But observers from New York and beyond likely won't be satisfied with a second-round showing this time around, especially considering the dreary postseason droughts that still linger on the active ledgers: the Knicks' championship drought has entered a fifth decade and they haven't been to the Eastern Conference Finals since 2000, the third-longest active denial behind only lowly Washington and Charlotte.
New York was one of the talking points of the lead-in to All-Star Weekend: the team had two men in the exhibition's opening lineup for the first time since 1975 and they won nine of their last 11 games prior to the hiatus. Despite their struggles against elite teams, New York sits comfortably among the Eastern Conference's top three at the All-Star landmark.
Looking foward to second half goals, Brunson remarked that he is looking to fulfill every expectation and duty that the point guard role requires.
"There's so many different ways to play the point guard position, but to be able to lead a team, to help your team win is the most important," Brunson said. "So how can you keep guys together when things aren't going well? When everything is going well, it's easy. But when it's not, how are you able to focus everyone in to get back on track? I think that's what's the most important thing, or at least I think it's the most important."
