Knicks' Jalen Brunson Reveals Key to USA Victory as Final Round Begins

New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson has a simple solution for Team USA to get over its loss to Lithuania and succeed in the FIBA Basketball World Cup's knockout round.

Jalen Brunson's 2023 year of basketball has been so blessed that even his losses have enjoyed perfect timing: the first loss of his reign over the United States' men's basketball team's starting point guard spot came when the red, white, and blue was guaranteed advancement into the knockout round the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Asia.

Now that that's out of the way, global stakes are on the line.

Mere momentum and a perfect World Cup record was the major casualty when Team USA (4-1) dropped a 110-104 decision to Lithuania on Sunday in the second-round conclusion for each side. Technically speaking, the Americans enter Tuesday's quarterfinal showdown against Italy in Manila (8:40 a.m. ET, ESPN2) on a bit of a high note: over the final half-hour of game time, Team USA outscored Lithuania by 13 ... but that came after the Lithuanians took the first 10 minutes by a 31-12 tally.

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That's what concerns Brunson, the New York Knicks' star point guard, who previously shouldered the blame for the early no-show in the immediate aftermath.

"Using the jump from the start, we can't wait," Brunson said as Team USA practiced for the showdown with the Italians, per Naveen Ganglani of Rappler.com. "The way we started that second half (against Lithuania) is how we need to start the game."

"Obstacles are going to happen in any style of basketball or any league. It's all about how you bounce back, how you respond and how you overcome those obstacles, how you really ... not necessarily change your game but your mind has to change now that it's single-game elimination, things like that. So you can't ease into games, just got to tap in from the beginning."

Jalen Brunson stresses how important it is for USA Basketball to play better early in their games. pic.twitter.com/94h92dTyNw

— Naveen Ganglani (@naveenganglani) September 4, 2023

At the very least, Brunson was able to help the Americans claw back into the international affair after the slow start: through assists and his own baskets, he played a role in 13 of the team's 28 points in the third period, which saw the deficit shrink to as low as four. Brunson wound up being one of only three Americans with a positive plus/minus and also shared the game lead in assists with seven alongside Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana). It was an undeniable personal improvement from the prior game against Montenegro, which saw Brunson benched for the entire fourth quarter in the States' comeback victory.

Alas for the Americans, another Lithuanian aerial attack stifled any further momentum, hitting four triples in the fourth to seal the deal. The game began with Lithuania hitting each of its first nine attempts from three-point range to build the early lead. Sunday's loss denied not only perfection but another group win after the Americans swept their preliminary trio at the onset of the competition.

Jalen Brunson getting crafty in the paint vs Lithuaniapic.twitter.com/JFOWLhP2Yv

— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) September 3, 2023

While USA basketball is hardly in dire straits, members of Team USA will look to make a good impression now that the team's ticket to Paris' 2024 Summer Olympics is officially clinched. The Americans are also looking to break a tie with defunct Yugoslavia for the most World Cups with their sixth title, as well as make up for a disappointing sixth-place finish during the 2019 competition in China.

A member of the international press asked Brunson if a supposedly lengthy playoff trip with the Knicks caused any fatigue as the latter stages loom. Brunson dispelled the idea of the Knicks' second-round trek being a long playoff trip, but it seemed to have at least partly prepared him for Team USA's high-risk, high-reward contests. 

"It's a basketball game. There's a lot at stake, but there's no pressure," Brunson said. "We've just got to go out there and play our style, do what we do, and stay together, just bounce back."