The New York Knicks-Philadelphia 76ers Game 6 was an emotional rollercoaster for the fans. Going into that game, the Knicks had a 3-2 lead in the series, but they had to overcome some tough competition from the 76ers to clinch the round-one playoff matchup at Madison Square Garden. During the hard-fought 118-115 win, the Knicks kept their fans at the edge of their seats as the victory needle kept swinging back and forth between the two sides. Even the New York-born NBA veteran Kenny Smith was feeling the pressure of the nail-biting matchup, which prompted him to make some questionable decisions.
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The Jet likes to keep his affiliations on display for the world to see. For this particular game, he had an orange pocket square to symbolize his support for the Knicks during his appearance on the Inside the NBA broadcast on TNT. However, as the Knicks started to lose their grip on the game by the end of the first half, the NBA veteran reassessed his affiliation and decided to take the pocket square out of the frame.
“The Knicks, I don’t know what the hell they’re doing.”
Chuck breaks down an entertaining first half in Philly pic.twitter.com/BsM9YGXAeI
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 3, 2024
Smith was disappointed by the fact that his team blew a 22-point lead right at the halftime break. But to his surprise, Jalen Brunson and Co. came back in the second half and dominated the last two quarters to win the game. This prompted Smith to reinstate his pocket square.
If the two-time NBA Champion wasn’t aware of a mole in his camp before, he surely is now. When Brunson joined the TNT crew for a brief chat after the win, Charles Barkley snitched on his friend about the whole pocket-square fiasco only to get a reaction out of Brunson.
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He said, “Hey Jalen, I want to tell you this. Kenny had a New York Knicks pocket square before the game started, he took it off in half-time.” Needless to say, Brunson was shocked and disappointed at the same time upon learning about Kenny’s betrayal mid-way through the game. Fortunately, he could see on the screen that The Jet had put the pocket square back on and said, “He put it back on” in excitement. The 27-year-old had a brilliant stat sheet in Game 6 with 41 points, 12 assists, and three rebounds in 44 minutes of playing time.
Jalen Brunson trolled Kenny Smith
Before the two got into the pocket square placement issue, Brunson took the opportunity to troll Kenny by taking a dig at the Tar Heels. The Jet is an alumnus of the North Carolina Tar Heels and Brunson used to play for the Villanova Wildcats until 2018.
Jalen: “Is this Kenny?”
Kenny: “Yes it is!”
Jalen: “2016 banner Kenny!”
Brunson had to remind Kenny of Villanova’s 2016 Championship after the W in Philly pic.twitter.com/XAkpe73k0g
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 3, 2024
During the post-game conversation, Brunson stopped Kenny midway through his question, only to say, “2016 banner, Kenny.” The Knicks star was talking about his Villanova team taking the National Championship against the Tar Heels in the 2016 NCAA Finals, the banner of which still hangs at MSG. In one night, the 27-year-old beat the 76ers, took his team to the Conference Semis, and brutally trolled a great of the game. It seems like this will remain a memorable outing for Brunson for a very long time.
