Knicks beat Pacers in Game 1, Is Jalen Brunson a superstar? | NBA | FIRST THINGS FIRST
Jalen Brunson scored 43 points in Game 1 against the Indiana Pacers, leading the New York Knicks to a Game 1 victory. Nick Wright, Chris Broussard, and Kevin Wildes debate over whether or not Brunson is officially a superstar.
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Nick Wright, Chris Broussard, and Kevin Wildes team up on First Things First. The trio offers their take on a bevy of sports stories alongside special guests from across the sports world.
Knicks beat Pacers in Game 1, Is Jalen Brunson a superstar? | NBA | FIRST THINGS FIRST
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Jalen Brunson beat Donovan Mitchell twice in the playoffs
My point exactly. Brou must have forgot that when Mitchell got knocked off by DAL, it wasn't because of Luka that year. JB held them down. It was the 1st time I took notice of his game
And neither one is a superstar 😂
Donovan ain’t no superstar tho
@@OG_718"took notice of his game" is so funny to me for some reason 😂😂😂. I imagine you with a monocle and a top hat "my mistake, i was unfimiliar with his game before this affair of his"
@@JD-te6vmHe only scored 89 points in two games.
Next Game Brunson goes for 50pts 10 assists & hits the game ending last shot Brou: "So"
He's a choker, so he won't.
@@penkima4923 flopper too. you can see he taught his team mates well
@@penkima4923lol ok bro
Y'all some Haters he is A Closer plain and simple he closes the Game for his team
@@demetrius6459 He's fine. I just never support flopping like a diva like he does. He jumped INTO someone, they got called for a foul. He got a foul taken off him. And they tried to give him a phantom foul when he tripped himself lol. And he obviously taught divincenzo well.
The crew joking about the running gag of a dynamic between Rick/ Jalen Brunson and the show, specifically Brou, never gets old 😂
Nicks laugh killed me😭
You know he’s a superstar cuz he’s starting to get them superstar haters 😂😂
lol he’s not tho
Saying De'aron Fox and Mitchell are better than Brunson is crazy
Saying either one is far from crazy.
That's why you can't take Brou too seriously talking about basketball. Throughout his reporter career, Brou is known for lying stories 😂
@@penkima4923Brunson cooked the kings and cooked the Donavan in 2 playoffs
@@Michael-tg4oh False.
JB isn't better then either at this point
Jalen brunson didnt just outplay Donavan Mitchell last year... he ALSO did it he last year with the mavs, he went up 2-1 while luka was out If brunson isnt a Sstar then neither is Donavan mitchell
Mitchell has put up superstar numbers, so he has an argument of being a superstar. Brunson has not.
that is exactly what he is saying, yall are real dumb lmao. He is saying Mitchell isn't a super star so why would Brunson be a superstar.
Steph, LeBron, KD, and (I'll add) Kawhi, WERE superstars, but at this point in their careers they're no longer superstars due to age and/or health.
He isn't 😂😂
This is Brunson's third straight playoffs that he's been killing it meanwhile this is really Ant's first. Just say you don't like the guy.
Brunson has been killing it at regular star level. Ant is now playing his second playoff series versus the Nuggets, where he's the best player over Jokic.
@@penkima4923 But Brunson has been doing this since the WCF when he was in Dallas...
@@bennwardhaugh3013 Doing this, meaning playing at regular star level.
@@penkima4923 Whatever, I won't bother continuing this as I can already see how this is going to go.
I just want to know why Brou is so passionate about this...
Is it because Nick tries to constantly talk over him?
@@penkima4923I disagree
I agree
@@phillyd2738 Parrot
He’s a NY hater from the midwest
The fact that brou is so hung up on names and not the fact that Jalen beat Donovan not once, but twice, and that the Knicks are in this position without their second all star and there best offensive weapon off the bench is outrageous to me considering the Cavs barely put away an Orlando team that hasn’t sniffed the playoffs for 4 years. the Knicks without og and Julius and Mitchell Robinson for most of the year were willed by JB to be the SECOND SEED IN THE EAST. And they just got past a Sixers team that was throwing 6’6”, 6’8” and 6’10 guys at him and he still scored 40+.
Broussard is still arguing Mitchell over Brunson! What a clown!
Clowns don't make valid arguments. Clowns make ad hominem arguments.
😂😂😂😂😂😂. This man said he’s not better than Fox or Mitchell I’m weak. Broussard just lost all credibility. Literally sent Donovan home twice in the playoffs and Fox didn’t even make it to the playoffs.
A lot of people have Donovan over Brunson. Don't get stuck in the moment.
because he is better
@@Shot007a lot don’t know basketball so what’s new!! 😂
I wonder how people would feel about Brunson if he was 6’6
He'd be like the best player in the league if he was 6'6 lol
Brunson has been having his moment since WCF. Am I missing something 😕
It hasn't been a superstar moment.
@@penkima4923 so SGA had a superstar moment yet???
@@BKReeeflook up top jersey sales
@@samkellogg2805🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I wouldn't even pay this much attention if i was you. But i can basically explain to you what's happening. You see Brunson is defying the odds of what the NBA considers to be a superstar. In other words, his road to success goes against the narrative of what the NBA considers an elite athlete and so they're trying so hard to downplay his achievements in order to not give others like him hope. It's basically because they can't stand the fact that someone his size can go against the grain in the NBA by simply out- working some of the biggest names that was chosen by the league to represent them. It's like how do we just let this guy come in through the back door & then lead his team to a place that none of us expected? So of course they're gonna downplay what he's doing until they have no choice but to RESPECT & acknowledge it!
Jalen Brunson has been very good for two years now
He’s been very good since college. He didn’t get his opportunity in the NBA until Luka got hurt
@@Okieantthat doesn’t make the original comment wrong. How many guys never get an opportunity? JB has been really good for 2 years and even more fantastic this year. let’s hope Tibbs doesn’t run him into ground playing 46 mins a night
But they call Anthony Edwards and SGA superstars who have done less.
SGA was all-NBA first team last season. Brunson wasn't, because it's not a team accolade.
@@penkima4923 never made the playoffs till now….
ANT is built different tho
@@MrGregGrey Smh he’s bringing up only regular season to justify that SGA is a superstar. Brunson has proven way more in the postseason than SGA. Brunson is easily a superstar.
@Rosecain27 wtf that gotta do with resume...
Can we just let the boys play and revisit this convo in the offseason? lmao
Facts makes no sense to debate this rn
That’s why I’m with Brou, dude has a chance but zero reason to jump the gun
@@mxchump I mean he literally proved it when Luka went out vs Jazz in 2022, proved it during the 2023 postseason and is proving it again this postseason. You can’t deny his impact, look at what he’s doing without any all-star caliber players next to him. Jalen is a superstar. If he had a consistent #2 option next to him currently, the Knicks would be championship favorites. Be patient, he’s just gonna keep proving himself.
But then they’ll have nothing to talk about and can’t get views. Can’t have that!
They have to talk about something bro. 🤣
More anti-Knicks stuff from Broussard. Why does he get so heated over this minor talking point?
Why do you call that anti-Knicks? Brunson isn't a superstar.
@@penkima4923Then neither is Ant or Sga
@@penkima4923better than your team’s best player
Midwesterner hating on NY
Being a superstar is like getting into the hall of fame…everybody can get in
They were calling luka a top 5 player before he EVER won a playoff series. Don't tell me jalen Brunson can't be a superstar for basically averaging 40 on his way to the ecf😭😭 Sga antman etc haven't been great for 3+ years and they get the superstar label. Why not Brunson??
"They were calling luka a top 5 player before he EVER won a playoff series." So, they didn't call Luka a superstar, before he won playoff series. "Don't tell me jalen Brunson can't be a superstar for basically averaging 40 on his way to the ecf" Regular stars basically average 40. Superstars actually average 40. "Sga antman etc haven't been great for 3+ years and they get the superstar label. Why not Brunson??" SGA made all-NBA first team last season, Brunson made none. SGA lifted OKC youngsters from 10th seed to 1st seed this season, in the toughest conference ever. Brunson lifted NY from 5th seed the 2nd seed, Randle playing 46 games. And SGA is a legit MVP-contender this season, unlike Bronson. There's a whole lot more reason for SGA to be called a superstar, rather than Brunson. Ant is putting up far better numbers in these playoffs than Brunson. But I don't think Ant is a superstar, yet. He could be FMVP soon, though.
@@penkima4923 how is ant playing better? He has kat and Rudy and a bench ant not playing the entire game at a superstar level while Brunson plays the whole game but like 2-3 and still has the numbers and efficiency, Brunson> the field it’s not close
@@kevindundon3811 Brunson doesn't have close the efficiency of Ant, not exaggerating one bit.
@@kevindundon3811no one is saying Brunson is trash. Your just saying he is better than everyone AND its not even close, which is absurd. Anthony Edqaeds is playing 4 less min per game than Brunson, True Shooting Percentage that is 7% better than Brunson, an efffective FG % that is 9% better than Brunson, Edqaeda net rating/offensive rating/defensive rating are 17.5/5.5/12 points per 100 possessions better than Brunson (and ant did this against better teams thus far than Brunson, those numbers are ridiculous), Ant has 1.5 to Brunson 1.1 Win shares in the playoffs, and Ant’s PER player efficiency rating is 29.4 to brunson’s 24.4 in the playoffs so far. The numbers dont lie dude. Hate to be considered a hater, which I’m not.m I freaking love Brunsons game, b it their are other dudes doing stuff too. Stuff does happen outside of NYC when it comes to basketball, like pretty much every good team that has won a chip the last 70 years have been outside of NYC.
Chris obviously doesn't watch the games, real ones know, JB is a superstar
Brou knows about the eye-test, and that doesn't warrant superstar status on it's own.
Nick stop interrupting Brou.
Yesh ngl, it’s getting obvious & annoying lol
fr, I love this show with deep passion but that is the only thing that irritates me 🤣
Watch it back, brou interrupted him just about as much. They’re both just hot about this take
Brou was interrupting nick, did you even watch
Now Chris just gonna hold on to this because it’s a bit now. He said Mitchell better then Brunson but rite now it’s not even close. Brunson all day doing more with less better stats and wooped that A$s head to head.
Man how do you ignore 4 40 point games in a row against the reigning MVP and a 2nd round playoff team, brou is in denial, especially with ant having the better team and averaging less
The reigning MVP was injured. And Ant is shooting 55 % from the field, compared to Brunson's 44 %.
@@penkima4923embiid being injured is not an excuse look at his stats while playing on one leg and people still had Philly winning that series just because embiid was in the lineup regardless of the injury
@@samsclub2435 His injury made him just sit in the paint, and not contest anything. He was half the defender, literally.
Edwards is having a great playoff run and he's the face of the league... Brunson has been BETTER than Ant and he's not even a superstar?
Ant isn't the face of the league, yet. And Brunson hasn't been better than Ant.
Nobody considere Ant the face of the league. He's a young star on the rise. If he wins a championship you can start to have that conversation.
@penkima4923 Ant surrounding cast is better tho
@@penkima4923 lmao Brunson has been better... he is way more important to his team than Ant is. If Ant goes down Wolves will still win games with that cast. Brunson goes down the Knicks might be the the Pistons this year. Meanwhile, Brunson was missing 3... THREE!!! KEY STARTERS most of the season and he still led them to 2nd place. GTFOH with that Ant is better talk. About time Ant has become consistent.
@@penkima4923 not real fans, but that's been the discussion all over NBA media. And Brunson has absolutely been better than Ant. He's been willing his team to wins. Ant has been incredible, but his team is absolutely stacked.
to me there are like maybe 8 super stars in the nba. jokic, giannis, steph, embiid, durant, lebron, luka, and tatum. i think currently brunson is on that second tier. he’s a star no doubt. superstar? close but not yet imo
Tatum is not him
Gotta add SGA to that but otherwise I agree. Probably Kawhi when healthy
@@TheElsMan i think sga is on that same level of brunson imo but yes he’s also close
@@orenkeithley5324 honestly tatum is the guy who i would take off first for someone else
if Superstar is based off Popularity / Personality then 100% Brunson is not that guy.. if Superstar is based off Most Valuable Team Player / Most Dominant Force then 100% Brunson is 1st team if not leading the entire pack.. thats just how valuable he has been this entire year, not just 5games, only difference is now the league is paying attention.
Why is Chris Broussard soo mad
The NY fan base sounds to be around as mad.
PLEASE BRING UP THAT JALEN HAS BEATEN DONOVAN TWICE! Once while they were on the Mavs and Jazz
I’m a nuggets fans and brunson is a superstar!! I only care about on the court!! I do not care about if he has a smile or Dan make me laugh! Lead my teams and put up my number
Jalen Brunson is the best point guard in the NBA and I'm tired of pretending he's not.
Never seen a player get discredited more than Jalen Brunson
I think Jalen Brunson is unfairly being treated because of his height.
These goofballs come up with everything. Now, it's "Superstar." 1a, 1b, 1c these Ws.
this show is so goated 🙏🙏🙏
Chris Broussard 😂 give him a hug
Thank you Nick for providing the numbers and showing bru.
I love the hate brunson is getting, this is brunsons 2nd year. His first yr he had to adjust to a new team compared to other teams who had a big 3.
But Shai is a superstar… Who hasn’t had a better playoff series performance than Brunson yet. Brunson has sent Donovan Mitchell home twice already lmfao
Jalen Brunson is the 8th best player in the NBA. I think top 10 qualifies as superstar.
Imagine if jalen was giving the keys to a franchise like Donovan from the beginning. If the knicks beat the pacers on the strength of jalen i cant wait for the goal post moving then.
Knicks actually gave Brunson the keys. That's why Josh and Donte are in NY. Wait till the Knicks get Mikal. I'm guessing that was part of Brunson's deal coming to NY: Getting the 2017 Villanova team, who are in the NBA, back together.
Brou on Derrick White: Move him and switch out with Tatum. Brou on Brunson: Let's just wait before we but him on Superstar level. 🤦♂️ 🤣🤣
I would LOVE!! to see Brunson drop back to back 50 point games in the post season and get Broussard's opinion again 😂😂😂 he loves to hate lol
Chris B. Seriously is nuts. Bernard King was absolutely a superstar pre knee injury. How can anyone argue right now that Jalen Brunson is not a superstar. Ridiculous
This post season is giving birth to the new generation of superstars 🔥🔥love to see the young talent taking the torch
It’s crazy to see Nick go this hard for my boy JB…considering when we signed Jalen, Nick called it “the saddest sweepstakes in free agency history” 😂😂😂 these “analysts” be so wrong and just come back like it’s nothing
Nick and Wildes bringing up Rick Brunson as often as they can to try to get Brou to call Jalen by the wrong name is just chef's kiss. 🤣
Brunson is a superstar. Also, he missed having 5 straight 40-point games by 1-point. The Brunson hate is getting weird. The guy is so humble and never makes excuses.
None of the players Broussard mentioned have come close to this run in the playoffs which is where stardom is measured to begin with. Doing it with no superstars either. Come on man
Brunson has been a savior since coming to New York, Brou wouldn’t know that.
Wildes laugh cracks me up every time
Bru's requirement for being a SUPERSTAR: 6 Championships w/6 FMVP (In a spam of 10 years)
You have spam for brains.
Nobody said that. You Kids just hype everybody after an lmpressive run and I am a AE fan
@@bigpoppa6658 Dude, Broussard is the same guy that said if Murray won another championship with Denver this year he'd be in the Hall Of Fame!! Dude is like a career 18pt a game scorer who's missed a shitload of games.
Brunson is the guy that doesn’t do it for the accolades of others. Like Donte said they know in that locker room what they got in JB. Us as Knick fans know what we got in JB.
Criss for me Is one of the best, but he now that JB Is a súper start And i does not want to back down what he said, this Is the first time i,m agreed with nick!!
The ironic thing is that Brou is doing to Brunson what Nick was doing to Purdy
He is the second best Knick of all time right now
Tje only reason some dont call him a superstar now is only because he wasnt a lottery pick, the man has basically done this since joining the knicks any other guy that was lottery pick would be
Donavan has a track record of losing playoff series he has home court advantage in lol
Broussard DEFINITELY starting to make himself sound dumb! That man is DEFINITELY a superstar! It's ok to be late to the wagon like the MOST of us, but he's MOST DEFINITELY a superstar now!
Sounds like Broussard is being groomed to be the next Skip Bayless on FS1.
Brou is being hardheaded.
Mitchell vs Brunson is fair argument, I'd lean Brunson but Fox isn't anywhere close.
people in the sports media under value true point guards… just like scorers.
I agree with broussard. Let Jalen do it first, even if he's on the trajectory, before being called one. Its really because he plays for ny and they've been desperate for a superstar. People have a tendency to jump the gun. I believe he will but let it happen.
He’s done it bro wtf. His second option is Josh hart and he just DOMINATED the embiid maxey 6ers. Brunson is a top 5-6player in the league currently
I would agree with brou if he didn't turn around and say Donovan Mitchell is a superstar
he carried Dallas in the playoffs when Luca was out, he single handidly carried the knicks last yrs playoffs dropping a 40 piece on the best defense in the league in the heat.. he has dominated this playoffs like nobody else outside of Edwards, even more than him, this isn't a flash in the pan, he has been that guy for 3 straight playoffs now.
@@myredrumscold210 yeah I Mitchell is a star not a super star.
Jalen has outplayed Brunson for two playoff series The Knicks also had a choice between Brunson or Mitchell And chose Brunson That should tell you enough
Superstars are made in the playoffs. Nick is right to talk Playoff numbers. Jalen is close to superstar because of what he’ does in the playoffs in 3 seasons. I’d say he is superstar territory. And better than fox and Mitchell
First time I ever have agreed with Nick. Broussard is buggin
For the record Jalen outplayed Donavan Mitchell 2x twice ✌🏾😏 in the playoffs
Chris “Let me finish Nick, I’ll let you talk later” Lies. lol
Wright is right. Shut the up, Chris? Is Embid a Superstar? What about Allen Iverson?
If you didn't get there vs Philly you need to wait for him vs the Celtics. Playing this Indy team means nothing. Every single team in the West would pay millions to face Indy/Cavs rn
Knicks legion prisoners of the moment - Brou 😂😂😂
I agree with you, Brou. He definitely has the potential, not just in talent but also in temperament.
Jalen Brunson is Brou’s version of nicks Brock purdy
this is just arguing for the sake of it brunsons a superstar he’s been dominating 2 years in a row
It took Tatum sweeping KD, beating the Bucks AND the Heat, having a record setting game 7, and making the Finals before anyone would admit he was a Superstar. Let Jalen at least get to the conference finals.
I love Fox and was saying he's clearly better than Lonzo going into the Draft, but Brunson is w/o a doubt better Brunson's volume scoring is insane, he is SO good inside the arc
If you start a team right now, whom would you build around, Brunson or Donavan? Brunson!!! and he has beaten him twice in playoffs...
Brunson is better than Mitchell and Fox lol. Whats Brou on about. Brunson is a superstar now.
What you do in the playoffs absolutely makes you a superstar. Is Chris nuts
Jalen helped Luka get to a WCF. And had to split touches with him.
Brunson is 1000% a superstar.
He’s almost there! Not quite a superstar. If he can repeat this season, we gotta put some respect on his name!
Brunson didn't put up superstar numbers this season, so another season won't help. If he makes the finals twice, or wins rings, then it's another story.
So SGA is not a superstar also?
@@BKReeef not yet… great player. Projected to be.
He's already repeated this season. They were eliminated in the 2nd rd last year
Jalen Brunson is outplaying Anthony Edwards yet Brunson isn't a superstar while Anthony Edwards is the next Michael Jordan. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE.
Keep doubting the guy and he will embarrass you again and again, remember everyone saying he's OVERPAID???
Bruo is such a clown 😂 his talking points make no sense.
If he beats the Celtics then we can revisit this topic.
If Brunson doesn't score 40 again, if a 2 Guard (Hart) doesn't grab boards like Rodman again, if Haliburton scores 1/3 of his regular season output or if the calls don't go their (the Knicks) way late.... the Pacers likely win that game. Winning ugly is still winning but I don't think Knicks fans should be very optimistic going forward. Having to depend on that bench is going to be tough.
The pacers defense stinks. Brunson might go for 40, three more times.
All of what you said may be true, but I think Nick Nurse said it best. I doesn't matter what happens for the first 46 minutes. When you play the Knicks, the end of the games are gonna be close, and it comes down to who makes the plays at the end. Jalen struggled his first two games, still close games. He goes off for 40+, still close games. What matter what the Knicks do, they're sweating it out at the end of games.
@@harryo82I don’t think the Pacers, or for that matter any other team is going to sweat Brunson putting up 40+ points every game. It doesn’t take a coaching mastermind to figure out the way to beat the Knicks is to force Brunson to beat you and to minimize what the rest of the team does well.
@@mosin9349No team is going to double team Hart or Divo to leave Brunson open.
Were missing 3 key players of course our bench isnt good.
Jalen Brunson is a superstar!!!!
Dude just said Bernard King wasn't a superstar. Then he keeps interrupting because he's being crushed. Chris Brussard is done. He's comparing a HISTORIC playoff run and historic season on an injury decimated team to Isaiah Thomas season in which he regressed in the playoffs. Cognitive dissonance is a real thing.
The only argument you can give for Brunson is “‘cus New York bro”
7:15 I agree with Brou 100% until at the end where he says with Nick that SGA and Edward's are now two new superstars. If they are now "superstars" JB is now too.
Brunson is elevating his team. Timberwolves remind me of 1999 Spurs even without Anthony. That’s how great this team is. It’s like if the 99 Spurs had a prime Dwayne Wade.
The problem is u guys think its the 90s early 2000s where we only had like 12 superstars, the league has evolved. There is at least 25 superstars in the league now. Stop removing someone to add another. Players r good now, really good from younger ages to playing older ages.
Love the show, just tell Nick to stop interrupting Brou all the time
Brunson has become the new Purdy on this show but in reverse! 😂
Brunson smoked Donovan Mitchell as well when he was on UTAH
Regular season where stars are made. Playoffs where superstars are made. NBA finals where legends are made.
He’s better than Mitchell and fox but neither of them are superstars
Can Nick go one segment w/out attempting to interrupt…. My God😂
If you knew the people he gets his orders from, no he can't.
Chris, I wish one of these days ESPN notices your resume and realize you have ZERO sense in basketball. I feel like they left you out when the cleaned house.
Broussard dude funny asl
While I understand and agree with the "Club Superstar" limit and theory, the issue is that we're ignoring the reality of the current NBA. Lebron is still playing, KD is still playing, Steph is still playing, Russ is still playing, Harden is still playing, PG is still playing. All of these superstars are still playing despite being at an age where guys normally would retire or at least take a greatly reduced role. So when we're judging who is a superstar we're normally comparing these young guys to guys who have been around for 15 years+. At this point we need to separate the Legacy guys from the current and rising superstars to fairly judge it.
Nick proved Brou's point. Brunson and Thomas are the same player except for this current hot streak and that alone is not enough to be a superstar. That's what Chris is saying.