After losing to the Toronto Raptors 113-106 last night, the New York Knicks’ eight-game losing streak ended. Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks are 18-14 this season and 8-2 in their last ten games. The signing of Jaylen Brunson is significant for the Knicks. His points per game (20.4) is second on the team and his results have paved the way for other players to succeed. Yesterday, however, the league announced it would take the Knicks’ second-round draft pick as part of its investigation into Brunson’s 2025 signing.
The NBA announced Wednesday afternoon that the New York Knicks will forfeit their 2025 second-round pick Jalen Brunson as a direct result of the league’s investigation into the teams that signed them over the summer. They also announced that Knick is fully cooperating with the investigation.
NBA betting sites have Kiki at (+15000) to win the Finals this season.
The following was released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/qBA7JnwKlo
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) December 21, 2022
The Knicks lost a 2025 second-round pick to sign Jaylen Brunson
PG, 26, was the Knicks’ biggest signing this offseason when they signed him to a four-year, $104 million contract. The family joins the franchise with a large number of ties. Brunson is a New Jersey native and it’s close to home. In addition, the Knicks hired Brunson’s father, Rick, as an assistant coach during the offseason, previously working under head coach Tom Thibodeau.
For Knick and Brunson, the plot continued to thicken. Leon Rose is the president of the New York Knicks and his extensive career in the league began with a surprise when he signed Rick Brunson as his first client and later did the same for Jalen. He had to let go of Jalen when he became president of the Knicks, but Rose’s son, Sam, will soon be Brunson’s new agent.
To make matters worse, the Knicks reached out to Brunson before June 30 and clashed with league officials. The NBA released this statement yesterday.
“This result reflects the finding, after an investigation, that the Knicks were engaged in free agency discussions regarding Jalen Brunson prior to the date such discussions were authorized” – NBA
Losing a 2025 second-round pick won’t hurt the Knicks’ draft capital at all. Over the next seven seasons, the Knicks have 11 first-round picks and 9 second-round picks.
