Training camp is still weeks away, but Jalen Brunson already has homework. It came from a former champion who knows exactly what it takes to defend a title, and it has nothing to do with his own game.
The challenge is simple to say and hard to do. Brunson has to help make someone else a star, and the Knicks might need it more than anyone realizes.
What Kendrick Perkins Told Brunson Yo Do For OG Anunoby
Kendrick Perkins laid out the assignment on the Road Trippin’ podcast, and he did not hold back. His message to Brunson was about walking up to Anunoby on day one of camp and making him a promise.
“Start of training camp, you go up to OG and tell OG, ‘hey bro, real talk, this year I’m gonna make you an All-Star. I’m gonna make sure of that,'” Perkins said. “The best way to go about repeating, is to put yourself all the way last and say, ‘I’m gonna help these other guys reach some individual goals.'”
Perkins picked Anunoby for a reason. He averaged 16.7 points and 5.2 rebounds last season while doing his usual work locking down the other team’s best wing. He still picked up 36 All-Star votes but missed the final cut, a snub plenty of Knicks fans have not forgotten.
Then the playoffs happened. Anunoby’s tip-in during Game 4 of the Finals became an instant piece of Knicks history, after that sealing a five-game win over the Spurs and the franchise’s first title in 53 years. That moment is exactly why Perkins thinks the All-Star snub gets corrected this time, if Brunson puts in the work to make it happen.
Why This Fits Into New York’s Bigger Plan For The Season
That same repeat mentality showed up when Brunson spoke about the season ahead. He wants the Knicks to walk into camp almost pretending the championship never happened, and helping Anunoby chase All-Star recognition fits right into that approach.
“We don’t want to speak of the trophy, we don’t want to talk about the trophy, we don’t want to see the trophy,” Brunson said. “We want to come in with the same mindset if not even tougher mindset than we had last year.”
Getting Anunoby to an All-Star Game would spread the attention defenses have to pay across the roster. It would also mean less weight sitting only on Brunson’s shoulders every night, something the Knicks could use over an 82-game stretch.
New York returns its full championship core, led by Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, Anunoby and Josh Hart. The group knows what winning looks like. The question now is whether they can share the load well enough to do it twice.
Brunson has carried heavy scoring nights before, including a 45-point closeout performance in the Finals. Asking him to shift focus toward a teammate’s recognition says a lot about where his head is at going into the new season.
None of this guarantees Anunoby makes the All-Star team in February. But if Brunson buys into what Perkins is selling, the Knicks head into camp with a roster that gets harder to guard and a wing finally getting the shot he deserves.
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