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The New York Knicks have been cruising during December, as they’ve gone 7-1 since the start of the month.
What’s more impressive about their production, however, is that they’ve managed to cultivate such success whilst starting point guard Jalen Brunson has been hampered by a nagging foot injury.
Since spraining his foot during the fourth quarter of New York’s 112-99 win over the Sacramento Kings back on December 11, the 26-year-old has been viewed as questionable heading into virtually every subsequent game.
To the surprise of many, Brunson has yet to be seen in street clothes as a result of the injury and, most recently, put forth a tremendous showing during the Knicks’ latest triumph over the Indiana Pacers on December 18, leading the club to their seventh straight win.
During a post-game interview, the guard was asked by legendary Knicks player and MSG analyst Walt “Clyde” Frazier how it feels to be able to endure the pain that’s sure to be present due to his lower body ailment and help to continue guiding the club on such an impressive stretch.
In response, Brunson noted that as long as New York continues to win, he’ll continue to feel “good.”
“Anytime you can come away with a win everything feels good,” Brunson said. “I’m fine. [I’m going to] keep gutting it out and just keep playing. If I can walk I can play, you know that.”
Logging just shy of 35 minutes on the night, Brunson went on to lead all scorers with 30 points while also logging 3 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals on 50% shooting from the floor and a whopping 100% shooting from distance.
Brunson Has Been Great for Knicks as of Late
Jalen Brunson’s addition to the Knicks’ rotation has been felt in a positive light seemingly since his opening night back on October 19, but his play during their recent seven-game stretch has been truly special.
Since the start of December, New York’s $104 million man has been remarkable, as he’s posting averages of 19.4 points, 5.4 assists, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals on an incredibly efficient 51.5% shooting from distance.
Interestingly enough, however, since tweaking his foot against the Kings, Brunson has only gone on to up his level of play for the Knicks, as he’s been posting marvelous averages of 27.3 points, 5.3 assists, 2.0 rebounds, and 2.0 steals on 50.9% shooting from the floor and 66.7% shooting from beyond the arc, while seeing two 30-point performances during this stretch.
Knicks Guard a Trade Option for Bulls
Behind Jalen Brunson on the depth chart are several backcourt talents who have been reported as being expendable at various points throughout the 2022-23 campaign, and one of them in veteran Derrick Rose could prove to be a good target for the Chicago Bulls.
Following Chicago’s recent loss to the New York Knicks on December 16, analyst and former Illinois star Kendall Gill discussed during a post-game segment on NBC Sports how the former All-Star could help improve the club’s production, and believes that a trade for their former franchise cornerstone could prove to be quite beneficial.
“[The Bulls need] a point guard that knows how to run an offense and knows how to get everybody in sets so that they can get easy shots, then everything [on] the offense is going to be a lot easier and, guess what, we saw a point guard that just entered the game for the New York Knicks that hasn’t been playing very much…He could help us, man,” Gill said.
“We need a guy that can break down defenses…You get a true point guard. You get a guy that wants to come back home and play for the Chicago Bulls. You saw the fan reaction to him, and [you get] a guy that can help us break down defenses and get the ball to the right people.”
Though currently found outside of Tom Thibodeau’s nine-man rotation, Derrick Rose has proven himself to be a tremendously effective role player when given the opportunity over his last five seasons, boasting averages of 15.1 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.5 rebounds on 47.3% shooting from the floor and 36.0% shooting from deep during this span.
Should the Knicks not find themselves having any use for the former MVP moving forward, Gill believes that his hometown team and former employers in the Chicago Bulls should pursue him in a trade before February’s deadline.
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