DETROIT — Jalen Brunson has added to his playoff heroics.
With 4.3 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of a tied game with the Detroit Pistons, the New York Knicks’ All-Star crossed up wing-stopper Ausar Thompson and stepped into an open 3-pointer. The shot swished through, giving the Knicks a 116-113 lead over the Pistons during Game 6 of their first-round playoff series. A Pistons turnover sealed the deal.
JALEN BRUNSON CLUTCH 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Cuj973ue7U
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 2, 2025
The Knicks are moving onto the second round to face the Boston Celtics — thanks to a 40-point night from Brunson, whose final basket immediately became an iconic moment in the franchise’s history.
“Jalen’s shot, what can you say?” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “He’s at his best when his best is needed.”
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On Thursday, the team needed its captain as much as ever.
The Knicks led a helter-skelter match 103-92 with just over eight minutes to go, but a 20-2 Detroit run over the next five-and-a-half minutes carried the Pistons to a seven-point advantage. That’s when New York began to claw back, eventually tying the score at 113 on a Mikal Bridges putback tip-in with 35.6 seconds to go.
Magic from Brunson ensued.
Pistons star Cade Cunningham missed a floater, giving the ball back to the Knicks with the shot clock turned off, setting the stage for Brunson to end Detroit’s feel-good season.
“He’s the Clutch Player of the Year in the NBA for a reason,” Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said. “I was just amazed to see it happen, and I was wondering if it was gonna be a swish or he was gonna hit some part of the rim. But in true fashion, I don’t think any one of us thought when he got that good of a look, it would ever go off.”
Towns thought right.
Out of a timeout, Brunson dribbled at the top of the key, seconds ticking by. The objective was to drain the clock; he admitted after the game that he released the eventual game-winner earlier than he wanted.
Bridges ventured from the left side of the court past Brunson, acting as if he was about to set a screen but instead continuing to dart to Brunson’s right. The point guard went the opposite direction against Thompson, the same all-world defender who had stripped him on a midrange stepback not long earlier.
Brunson crossed over left to right as Thompson flew backwards, then released a shot that ended a hard-fought series against the plucky Pistons.
“I don’t really go and think, ‘All right, I’m gonna make this move right here.’ It’s just instinct,” Brunson said. “He beat me to the spot. He cut me off. Just went back the other way, and I found a lot of space, and I was able to take a shot.”
The Knicks will face the defending-champion Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Game 1 is scheduled for Monday.
(Photo: Gregory Shamus /Getty Images)
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