Jalen Brunson. Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Knicks guard joins NBA royalty in closeout win against 76ers

By Eric Smithling | Last updated 5/3/24

Knicks guard Jalen Brunson capped an incredible first round by joining NBA royalty on Thursday night.

The two-time NCAA champion had 41 points on 13-of-27 shooting, including 3 of 8 from beyond the arc and 12 of 16 from the foul line, in the Knicks' 118-115 win over the 76ers, closing out the series 4-2. It was his fourth consecutive playoff game with at least 35 points.

Raptors reporter Keerthika Uthayakumar noted the only other players to achieve that feat over the last 31 seasons are current and future Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, Dwayne Wade, LeBron James (twice) and Stephen Curry.

Players to score 35+ points in 4 straight playoff games in the last 31 seasons:

Michael Jordan in 1993
Shaquille O'Neal in 2002
Dwyane Wade in 2006
LeBron James in 2009
LeBron James in 2017
Stephen Curry in 2019
Jalen Brunson this playoffs
— Keerthika Uthayakumar (@keerthikau) May 3, 2024

It was also Brunson's third consecutive game with 40 or more points. Per Stathead, he joined Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Allen Iverson, Jamal Murray, Jerry West and Knicks legend Bernard King as the only players to accomplish that in the shot-clock era.

Brunson added 12 assists, his third game with at least 10 assists in the six-game series. According to "Inside The NBA"'s Ernie Johnson, Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson had been the only player in NBA history entering Thursday with 35 points and 10 assists in three games in a single playoff series.

Brunson has taken on an increased role with forward Julius Randle out for the season and has never looked better. He's in the mix for first-team All-NBA and, more importantly, an NBA title.

The former Villanova Wildcat averaged a career-high 28.8 points per game in the regular season, his second with the Knicks. During the playoffs, Brunson is leading all scorers by averaging 35.5 points per game.

If anyone thinks Brunson is close to slowing down, think again.

He averaged 35.7 points per game in three regular-season games against the Pacers, New York's next opponent.

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