Knicks guard Jalen Brunson drops Alex Caruso with nasty ankle breaker, hits dagger 3 to bury Bulls
Brunson #Brunson
Alex Caruso endeared himself to fans all over the globe with his hard-nosed defense and penchant for making winning plays. Caruso was crucial to the Los Angeles Lakers’ championship in 2020, and he was then able to parlay his strong play into a four-year, $36.9 million. So for him to get dropped on a nasty crossover with the game still hanging the balance? That is no small feat. But that’s exactly what Jalen Brunson did to seal the victory for his New York Knicks.
With the Knicks leading the Bulls, 125-119, with 30 seconds to go in overtime, Brunson had only one thing in his mind – to put the nail in the Bulls’ coffin. However, it was Caruso, the all-world defender, who was draped all over him. But it didn’t matter.
Jalen Brunson rejected Quentin Grimes’ screen, burst towards the left corner, and stopped on a dime with a nasty left to right crossover, dropping Alex Caruso straight onto the floor. While nasty, this ankle breaker would have been hollow had Brunson clanked the shot. But he didn’t. Ballgame.
In a 128-120 Knicks victory, Brunson finished with 30 points and seven dimes, logging 39 minutes despite being questionable to play entering the night with a foot contusion. The southpaw has proven himself to be worth every penny of the four-year, $104 million contract he signed in the offseason, showing that his playoff breakout was no mere fluke.
The Knicks haven’t made much noise, but they have now won five straight games to move to 15-13, good for sixth in the Eastern Conference. Jalen Brunson has been a driving force behind the Knicks’ return to legitimate playoff contention. Meanwhile Alex Caruso and the Bulls continue to flounder, and, much like the Bald Eagle, Chicago continues to drop in the Eastern Conference standings.
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