Clutch players are a different breed in the NBA. The immense pressure and the fear of failure with such high stakes don’t deter those who are good when crunch time hits, and Jalen Brunson, over the last few years, has proved he’s in that category. His teammate Karl-Anthony Towns recently stated just how sure he is of Brunson making shots at the end of the game by comparing him to one of the all-time greats in Carmelo Anthony.
Advertisement
In the New York legend’s 7PM in Brooklyn podcast, KAT admitted that watching Brunson shoot midway is similar to playing with Anthony on NBA 2K12. Melo was rated 92 in that game and could score from just about anywhere on the field. Calling Brunson as good as Melo, overall, could be a step too far, but when it comes to the dying embers of the fourth quarter, Brunson is surely a man possessed, so it’s understandable where KAT comes from.
In the 2024-25 season, Brunson’s clutch genes were at their best. He averaged 5.6 points in the last five minutes, which was more than anyone else in the league, and led the league in the most field goals made in that duration (52). He was shooting 51% from the field and 84% on the line. Truly, he went into video game mode as Towns suggested.
“You get to the end of the game, you just feel like he’s gonna hit the shot, you know,” the New York Knicks big man said. “It’s kind of like, playing with Melo in 2k12. He got that club, you make every shot.”
Towns wasn’t done heaping praise on Brunson, who got awarded the 2024-25 NBA Clutch Player of the Year award. He described how the ex-Mavericks star always found himself in the right place at the right time, which allowed him to be such an efficient scorer. “He always finds a way, so, shoutout to JB, man. Cap always finds a way to get the job done.”
Anthony then asked Towns whether any of Brunson’s performances in the past season rendered him speechless, and the former Timberwolves player recalled the games against the Washington Wizards and the Detroit Pistons. “I feel like Washington was one of them where he had 50 something…”
Towns was talking about the December 28 regular-season game, the first of a back-to-back against the Wizards, where Brunson had scored 55 points, going 18 of 31 from the field. But perhaps what was more memorable was his game-winning shot against the Pistons in the playoffs.
“I remember when we closed out Detroit this year, game six… That shot was crazy, that was just one of those moments where you like, you know, when you see him do the crossover, you know he’s about to make it,” Towns added.
There were plenty of incredible Brunson moments for Towns to choose from, and he picked two out rather enthusiastically. A true hype man and a great teammate. Both of them, and the passionate Knicks fan base will be hoping that in the 25/26 season, they can look back on similar fond memories, this time in the NBA Finals.
