Getty Jalen Brunson dribbling for the New York Knicks.
The New York Knicks finally lost a game in the OG Anunoby era. It happened to be on a night when Jalen Brunson took on his former team in the Dallas Mavericks for the first time in Dallas since he joined the Knicks.
A disappointing loss for New York, even shocking, as Luka Doncic missed the game. The frustration settled in throughout the game for New York as the team couldn’t get much going until late in the second half. Brunson picked up a technical foul and when asked about it, he responded in a hilarious way. He had the following to say, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Post:
“I love to keep my money.”
Given the technical and comments after the loss, it doesn’t sound like Brunson was too happy with the officiating in the 128-124 loss.
Brunson’s Frustration an Issue Against Former Team
Jalen Brunson showing frustration isn’t exactly something that happens every night. The potential All-Star point guard usually stays calm and allows his partner Julius Randle to talk to the referees to express frustration.
Knicks are NOT happy with the officiating. And Rick Brunson NOT happy with Jalen losing his cool.
Ugly first half for the Knicks. Not the return to Dallas that Jalen hoped. So far.
Mavericks 74, Knicks 55
As the leader of this team, Brunson understands that there’s a time and place to be frustrated. That wasn’t the time to do so with the way New York was playing. Bondy reported more on what Brunson had to say about his mindset after the game.
“Yeah, it’s tough. I can’t be in that mindset of letting things frustrate me.”
He finished the game with 30 points but struggled in the first half, shooting just 4 of 12. Comparisons surrounding Kyrie Irving and Brunson have been at the core of basketball conversations in recent seasons, so it’s possible that Brunson took this game personally to try to prove that he’s the better player.
Instead, Irving got his team the win without his superstar teammate and finished with 44 points on 15-26 shooting and hitting 6 three-pointers.
Teams Are Calling Out Officiating
Officiating in the NBA has been at an all-time low recently. Since the start of 2024, there have been plenty of missed calls that have swung the direction of games.
Unfortunately, there’s not much players or coaches can do besides express their frustration after the game. Even then, whoever makes the comment will typically be fined.
New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau didn’t seem to care about a potential fine, hinting at the job the referees did after the game. He said the following, according to Bondy:
“Hey look, sometimes — and I understand, I don’t really care if the game was called tight or it was called loosely. I just want consistency,” Thibodeau said. “So there was some frustration there but that’s all part of it. We’ve got to handle that.”
The fouls were an issue in the first half, but the Dallas Mavericks only had two more foul shots in the game. The Knicks picked up 25 fouls, compared to the Mavericks’ 19.
While foul shots aren’t a direct indication of the job the referees did, the numbers would’ve looked different had the game continued on the path it was on in the first half.
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Knicks’ Jalen Brunson Has 6-Word Response to Loss Against Mavericks