Jalen Brunson 'Embraces' Support of Knicks Legends

Many New York Knicks alumni have returned to Madison Square Garden to support the team's active playoff run.

Apr 22, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Retired New York Knicks player John Starks reacts during the / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The more things change for the New York Knicks, the more they stay the same. John Starks, for example, is still playing a major role in a metropolitan title chase.

Knicks stars from the past have come to witness the present and future: Manhattan alumni like Starks, Bill Bradley, Patrick Ewing, Walt "Clyde" Frazier, Allan Houston, Larry Johnson, Stephon Marbury, and Latrell Sprewell have populated the courtside seating at Madison Square Garden during their successors' ongoing playoff run.

May 8, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Former NBA players Amar’e Stoudemare (l), John Starks (c) and / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Though an elusive clinching game at MSG has eluded the Knicks, Jalen Brunson, the current face of the franchise, acknowledged having the support of the ghosts of New York past.

"I just think it's always important to kind of embrace those who have set a foundation," Brunson said in video from SNY. "The things all those players did, regardless of what the outcome was, they were there. For them to come back and do the things they're doing on the sidelines, being into the game, is awesome. I thank them for that."

May 14, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) runs up court after / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Brunson's No.11 will perhaps be the next number to be immortalized in the MSG rafters if he keeps up his current pace. His historic postseason has brought the Knicks to the brink of uncharted territory.

One win away from the conference final round, the current Knicks are as close as they've been to the NBA Finals as they were since Ewing, Houston, Johnson, Starks, and Sprewell took them to a conference title in 1999.

New York is just one win away from returning to the conference finals, and they'll have the first of two chances to clinch their ticket against the Indiana Pacers on Friday night (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

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