Brunson is a Deserving Winner Jokic, Edwards, and other stars around the league have been excellent all year in the clutch. Jokic is the undisputed best player in the league and has carried his undermanned Nuggets squad to tight wins all season. However, no one was quite as dominant in crunchtime as Brunson, who felt almost automatic down the stretch of games for the Knicks. Brunson averaged 5.6 points per clutch game on 51.5% from the field, which ranked first and second in the league, respectively (minimum 2 FGA per clutch game). Only Jokic shot a higher percentage on clutch attempts (56.2%), but he averaged only 4.2 points. Brunson also posted an assist per clutch game to just 0.3 turnovers. New York was 17-11 in games classified as “clutch” contests that Brunson played in (final five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime with the score within five points). Knicks Have Craved a Legitimate Point Guard New York’s captain was the steady hand that this franchise has been lacking in a point guard for almost two decades. For a team that hadn’t started the same point guard in back-to-back seasons since Chris Duhon in 2009 until Brunson arrived in 2022, having a guy who can orchestrate the offense calmly in late-game situations has been a blessing. It’s not just the array of key buckets he scored (of which there were many), it’s his poise when everything around him is crumbling. His ability to dissect the best defenses with ease despite surrounding chaos at just 6-foot-2 is extremely impressive. Few players have willingly taken the challenge of handling the ball at Madison Square Garden, and Brunson has embraced it. Well, the fans have embraced him back, and this award is just the latest recognition of his ascension to the top tier of NBA superstars. Brunson will almost certainly be named an All-NBA selection, and rightly so. The next step is for him to weaponize his clutch mastery and take the Knicks on a long playoff run.