NBA
Knicks’ Jalen Brunson on 3-1 series vs. Celtics: ‘It’s nothing to celebrate’
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All posts by Antonio KozlowUpdated20 mins ago on May 13, 2025
After a hard-fought matchup in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference semifinals, the Knicks fans and players roared in celebrations as the final buzzer went off and the scoreboard read 121-113 in their favor. Despite beating the reigning champions once again, Jalen Brunson calmed things down in the postgame interviews.
Despite being 3-1 in the series against Boston, and looming close to their first conference finals appearance in 25 years, the New York guard doesn’t want to jinx it. “I was actually telling everyone to get off the court. I was like, it’s nothing to celebrate,” Jalen assured at the Madison Square Garden.
Brunson was special once again, finishing with a team-best 39 points on 25 shots with 12 assists. “The way we responded is what I’m most proud of. Sticking together. Most of all, not quitting,” he expressed, then adding that Wednesday night’s clash in Massachusetts won’t be easy.
However, there really was a lot to celebrate, as four Knicks players ended with at least 20 points. Despite having a slow start, the All-Star produced an 18-point effort in the fourth quarter. “There was a lot of miscommunication,” said teammate Mikal Bridges.
“Later in the game, we did better, and they were making a lot of tough shots. We can live with that. But early, you can’t let that happen on [defense],” he then added, noting how the Celtics exploded with 9-of-14 on 3s in the first quarter for 39 points.
As rival Jayson Tatum fell to injury and had to leave the court with a scary injury, Brunson opened his postmatch news conference with prayers for the Celtics All-Star. “I think [tonight] was a sense of urgency, desperation. Knowing that we had a great opportunity against a really good team,” he praised his opponents.
Jalen then added: “I don’t even think we’re playing our best basketball yet. We have a team that’s still fairly new this year, and we have a long way to go be the best team we can be. There’s always time to learn for us. We’re never satisfied, and that’s the mentality.”
