Mazzulla on Porzingis' early exit from Game 5: ‘He couldn't breathe' originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

BOSTON — Kristaps Porzingis’ struggles to stay on the court continued Wednesday night, and it sounds like his health issues were more pronounced this time around.

The Celtics big man logged just 12 minutes in Game 5 of Boston’s second-round playoff series with the New York Knicks at TD Garden and didn’t play at all in the second half. He finished with just one point on 0 for 3 shooting with one rebound and one block.

Head coach Joe Mazzulla shared a concerning update on Porzingis when asked about the big man’s limited minutes.

“I mean, he couldn’t breathe,” Mazzulla said after Boston’s series-extending, 127-102 win. “So, he was available if absolutely necessary.”

Porzingis started the game and played 7:38 minutes in the first quarter. He was used sparingly in the second quarter, however, and came to a mutual agreement with Mazzulla at halftime.

“That was just a decision between me and him,” Mazzulla said of Porzingis’ absence in the second half. “He was having difficulties breathing. But he wanted to be out there, and if we absolutely needed him, we would have been able to go to him and rely on him.”

Porzingis’ health difficulties stem from a viral respiratory illness that forced him to miss eight consecutive games in late February and early March. According to the C’s big man, he’s still feeling the effects of that illness in the form of depleted energy and breathing issues.

“I’ve had ups and downs up until this point, and just now had a big crash,” Porzingis said after Game 2. “My energy, my everything hasn’t been good.”

Porzingis played just 13 minutes in Game 1, 14 minutes in Game 2 and 19 minutes in Game 3 before delivering his “best” performance of the series in Game 4: a seven-point, four-rebound effort in 24 minutes. It’s clear the 29-year-old is very far from full strength, however.

Fortunately for the Celtics, Kornet stepped up in a huge way in Game 5, racking up 10 points, nine rebounds and a career-high seven blocks in 25 minutes of action. Kornet’s efforts were a big reason why Boston out-rebounded the Knicks 44-40 on Wednesday night after getting killed on the glass in Game 4.

With a must-win Game 6 set for Friday night in New York, don’t be surprised if we see more of Kornet going forward, with Porzingis only being deployed on an “as needed” basis.

Tip-off for Game 6 is set for 8 p.m. ET on Friday, with NBC Sports Boston’s coverage beginning at 7 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.

What we learned as Brandin Podziemski scores 28 in Warriors' season-ending loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

• BOX SCORE

The Warriors have never been swept in a playoff series with Steve Kerr as their head coach. For the first time ever, though, they lost four consecutive playoff games under him after dropping Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals, 121-110, against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night at the Target Center.

Steph Curry, because of a strained left hamstring, missed all four losses. The Warriors were 4-1 against the Timberwolves with Curry this season, and 0-5 without him. 

To keep the season alive and the remaining hopes of Curry getting another crack at this, the Warriors needed a miracle. They instead laid an egg. When the Warriors cut the lead to nine points in the fourth quarter, the Timberwolves immediately pushed it to 14 and always had an answer.

Brandin Podziemski finished on a high note with his one strong game of the conference semifinals. The second-year pro was far and away the Warriors’ best player, scoring a team-high 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting, and had six rebounds, four assists and two steals.

But the Warriors sans Curry was supposed to be about Butler, the co-star they acquired at the trade deadline. For the second straight game, Butler did not live up to his Playoff Jimmy moniker one bit. 

Butler only took 11 shots and made four on his way to 17 points, nine of which came at the free-throw line. Butler led the Warriors in rebounds (six), assists (six) and steals (three), but was a game-worst minus-17.

The two best players in the series were Timberwolves stars Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle. The duo outplayed Butler and Draymond Green. To cap it off, Randle scored a game-high 29 points, and Edwards had a 22-point, 12-assist double-double.

Minnesota’s offense found a lot of comfort in Golden State’s defense the past few games, and sliced the Warriors like melted butter to end their season. Whether it was inside the paint or behind the 3-point line, the Timberwolves like their looks. The Timberwolves shot 62.8 percent from the field and 41.9 percent from three, far better than the Warriors’ final shooting numbers of 43.3 percent overall and 28.2 on 3-pointers.

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ season-ending loss.

Butler’s Bad Ending

The Butler who did his best Batman impression in Game 3 was nowhere to be found in Game 4. Everybody was looking for Butler to be far more aggressive in Game 5 after battling an illness and being held to 14 points on a lowly nine shot attempts Monday night. Then he took just one shot in the first quarter and was a minus-11.

Butler began forcing his way to the free-throw line and scored six points in the second quarter, bringing him to eight points on five shot attempts and five free throw attempts. And he also was down to a game-low minus-19.

Butler never got going. He went into the fourth quarter as a minus-19 with 12 points on nine shots. He took 26 shots when he scored 33 points in Game 3, and then scored a total of 31 points on 20 shot attempts in the final two games of the season.

He wasn’t close to Batman, nor Robin, once again. Butler looked tired and helpless. Maybe his illness was that big of a factor. Maybe his pelvic contusion still is bothering him more than we know. Maybe this is who Butler is at 35 when he doesn’t have a Curry to play next to. 

Kuminga’s Up-And-Down Finish

Leaping over Randle, Jonathan Kuminga swallowed a rebound off a Jaden McDaniels missed shot, ran the floor and threw down a hammer dunk on the other side in the first quarter. That sequence right there is what the Warriors always envisioned, combining athleticism and true impact on the court. 

Kuminga, for the fourth straight game, was aggressive the moment he came off the bench. In his first stint, Kuminga played eight first-quarter minutes and scored nine points on seven shots. He was beating his man to the basket, nailed a three and had words for both Naz Reid and the Timberwolves crowd.

As the Timberwolves had three players at halftime in double figures, led by 15 points by Randle, Kumiga was the lone Warrior in the club with 11 points. That rebound in the first quarter that led to a dunk also was his only board at the time.

Though he was up to 19 points, he still only had that one rebound to his name entering the fourth quarter, which is two fewer than how many he finished with on a night where he didn’t have one assist. Kuminga tallied 26 points off the bench of 11-of-23 shooting, and in the four games without Curry, again showed he can put up points, but again, his weaknesses were exposed.

The Steph Effect

Simply said, the numbers don’t lie. The Warriors could have been contenders if Curry remained healthy. They’re not even pretenders without him, they’re an afterthought. 

It was astounding to be reminded how much Curry shifts the entire court. Curry, at 37 years old and in Year 16, completely changes an offense, as well as the mindset of the other team. As general manager Mike Dunleavy assesses his roster this offseason, the lack of scoring and shooting will have to be noted. 

The Warriors, in their four losses against the Timberwolves, shot 31.9 percent on threes, going 38 of 119. The Timberwolves made 41.9 percent of their threes in that span, making 58 and taking 136. 

Podziemski’s performance was too little, too late. His shooting in the first four games was historically bad. It’s great to end strong, but the Warriors needed more earlier.

Buddy Hield had a combined nine turnovers (four) and fouls (five) while scoring eight points in 30 minutes. The historically strong 3-point shooter missed all four attempts and was 2 of 9 from the field. Moses Moody showed fight in the fourth quarter, but he and Quinten Post were mostly out of the rotation in the most important games. 

It’s the Steph Effect, and it’s a reality check. The Warriors made the big move. They still also live and die by one player.

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Warriors' 2024-25 season comes crashing down with Game 5 loss to Timberwolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

All Steph Curry could do was watch from the bench as the Warriors’ 2024-25 NBA season ended with a thud.

The Warriors couldn’t extend their season, losing 121-110 to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday night at Target Center.

Brandin Podziemski led the way with 28, while Jonathan Kuminga scored 26 points off the bench and Jimmy Butler added 17. Draymond Green finished with 10 points, six rebounds and six assists in the loss.

All five Timberwolves starters scored in double figures, led by Julius Randle’s 29 and Anthony Edwards’ 22.

A once-promising NBA playoff run came crashing down when Curry sustained a Grade 1 left hamstring strain in the Warriors’ Game 1 win over the Timberwolves, and Golden State never recovered.

Green, Butler and Kuminga tried to hold down the fort without Curry, but their best efforts weren’t enough.

Kuminga was the breakout star for the Warriors, scoring at least 18 points in each of the four games without Curry.

But the Timberwolves won all four games Curry missed, including Games 3 and 4 at Chase Center, before closing out the series at home.

While the Timberwolves advance to their second consecutive Western Conference finals, the Warriors head into an important offseason.

Butler, the Warriors’ massive NBA trade deadline acquisition, fit in well with Curry, Green and Co. But now, general manager Mike Dunleavy must figure out which pieces fit with the aging superstars.

Dunleavy also has to decide if Kuminga, a soon-to-be restricted free agent, still fits with the Warriors, or if it’s best for the sides to move in different directions.

The Warriors had championship aspirations after acquiring Butler from the Miami Heat, and they closed the regular season on a 23-8 run after the six-time NBA All-Star joined the lineup on Feb. 8.

Golden State made a late push for a top-six seed but lost the regular-season finale to the Los Angeles Clippers, meaning it had to get out of the Western Conference play-in tournament to make the playoffs.

The Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies to secure the No. 7 seed and a showdown with the No. 2-seeded Houston Rockets.

Golden State built a 3-1 series lead but lost Games 5 and 6, setting up a winner-take-all Game 7 in Houston. Buddy Hield was the unlikely hero, scoring 33 points to lift the Warriors to a thrilling win.

The Warriors carried that momentum over into Game 1 against the Timberwolves, stealing the series opener at Target Center even as Curry exited in the first half.

But without Curry, the Warriors didn’t have enough offensive firepower to keep up with the hungry Timberwolves.

A helpless Curry sat on the bench in disbelief that a golden opportunity to get to the Western Conference finals slipped away, all because of the first hamstring injury of his 16-year NBA career.

Curry, Green and coach Steve Kerr might have one last chance next season to win a fifth NBA title during this dynastic run.

The process to get back to the NBA mountaintop begins now.

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Takeoff Podcast: Daryl Morey discusses NBA draft pick, Joel Embiid health plan originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Episode Summary

This week on the Takeoff podcast with John Clark, Daryl Morey joins from the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago to discuss the Sixers’ strategy after winning the 3rd pick. Plus, Morey talks about what he learned from last season and changing their approach when Joel Embiid makes a full recovery

Episode Notes

00:00 – Daryl Morey
00:24 – Sixers keep the pick
00:56 – 2025 Draft Class
01:46 – Biggest need for the Sixers
02:40 – Sixers staying at 3?
03:03 – Can Embiid keep up as the Sixers get younger?
04:00 – If Joel Embiid comes back…
04:58 – Ace Bailey
05:51 – Embiid’s recovery
07:35 – Learning from last season
09:26 – Roster going into next season
12:23 – Message for the fans
13:47 – Lottery night roller coaster

Cowboys' Parsons slams Acho for ranking Curry low in his top 10 originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Retired NFL veteran and current Fox Sports 1 analyst Emmanuel Acho shared a list of his top 10 active NBA players if everyone were at their peak in an X post on Tuesday.

Acho irritated many, particularly Dub Nation and Steph Curry fans, after ranking the superstar Warriors guard fifth, with LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant rounding out the top four in order, and Nikola Jokić, Anthony Edwards, Anthony Davis, Luka Dončić and Russell Westbrook trailing Curry in order.

Acho rightfully received some responses from those he agitated. And one respondee, surprisingly, was Dallas Cowboys star edge rusher Micah Parsons, who called out Acho in support of Golden State’s sharpshooting future Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer.

“I’m sorry, not having Curry first is disrespectful!” Parsons wrote on X.

Arguments for first place can be made for any of the players Acho listed.

However, NBA fans like Parsons who have paid attention to Curry’s illustrious 16-year Warriors career – consisting of four championships, two NBA MVP awards, 11 NBA All-Star nods, 10 All-NBA nods and a spot on the league’s 75th Anniversary Team – know how irreplaceable he is to Golden State and the success he has – and still can – brought the franchise when at his best; Curry’s case looms even larger, once considering how the Warriors miss him dearly in the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

And that’s before mentioning how Curry forever changed basketball with his transformative 3-point shooting prowess, unlike any of the great players on Acho’s list.

Nonetheless, Acho insisted on dying on his hill, even defending his take on Curry in response to Parsons.

“In their prime: LeBron, Kawhi, Giannis are all DPOY caliber players,” Acho wrote on X at Parsons. “Steph may be the most skilled offensively, but to say he’s better than any 2-way player (in their prime) is outta pocket.”

And when questioned by a commenter about his logic and how he placed Durant over Curry, Acho tripled down.

“Great question – I prefer Steph to KD, personally,” Acho replied. “However, prime KD (championship runs) was actually an impactful defensive player (blocks, steals, boards). Steph has always been someone you attack defensively, even in his prime.”

Curry, 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, might not be the caliber of defender that the other players mentioned in Acho’s list are. But the initial question Acho answered with his top-10 list was about the NBA’s best active players at their peaks.

And there’s no doubt Curry is one of, if not the, NBA’s best at his apex.

“If you wanted to say Steph, trust me, I won’t argue with you,” Acho replied to another X user. “This a really good convo that I don’t have enough characters for.”

Acho did have enough characters to rank Curry fifth, though.

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Tatum posts first message on Instagram after Achilles injury originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jayson Tatum’s recovery process has begun.

The Boston Celtics superstar suffered a ruptured right Achilles tendon in the fourth quarter of his team’s Game 4 loss against the New York Knicks on Monday night.

The Celtics announced Tuesday that Tatum is expected to make a full recovery after undergoing a successful surgery, but they did not give an official timetable for his return.

Tatum reacted publicly for the first time Wednesday with an Instagram post of him laying in his hospital bed, along with the caption, “Thankful for all the love and support.”

Tatum didn’t waste any time addressing his injury. The Boston Globe‘s Adam Himmelsbach reported details on why that was the case.

“According to a league source, the injury was confirmed when Tatum underwent testing Tuesday morning and the decision was made to operate immediately because swift action following Achilles’ injuries tends to lead to more favorable outcomes,” Himmelsbach wrote Tuesday.

“The source added that complications during these procedures are common, so the Celtics were encouraged when Tatum emerged from surgery with no further issues.”

Tatum led the Celtics with 28.1 points, 11.5 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game in the playoffs at the time of his injury.

The Celtics trail the Knicks 3-1 in their Eastern Conference semifinals series. Boston must win three straight games to advance to the conference finals, starting with Game 5 at TD Garden on Wednesday night.

Game 5 tips off at 7 p.m. ET, with NBC Sports Boston’s coverage beginning at 6 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.

Report: Warriors coaches ‘irked' by Kuminga looking off Steph originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Jonathan Kuminga continues to be a controversial topic among the Warriors world as his role with the team fluctuates even in Year 4.

He suddenly landed in coach Steve Kerr’s doghouse toward the end of the regular season and into the postseason, and a new report might indicate what led to those decisions.

“Despite his talent, Kuminga’s propensity to look for his shot at the expense of the flow of Golden State’s offense has irked the coaching staff,” The Ringer’s Logan Murdock wrote in a column published Wednesday. “During a late-season game against the [Portland Trail] Blazers, team sources say Kerr was incensed after several instances in which Kuminga looked off [Steph] Curry to create his own offense.”

In that Portland game during the second-to-last regular-season contest, Kuminga finished with 10 points on 2-of-7 shooting from the field and missed his two 3-point attempts, adding five rebounds, one steal and one block in 17 minutes off the bench in the 103-86 win.

But he recorded a DNP-CD (Did Not Play, Coach’s Decision) in the regular-season finale against the Los Angeles Clippers that raised several eyebrows across the league.

“By the start of the playoffs, many within the organization wondered whether Kuminga, who is eligible for an extension, had played his last game as a Warrior,” Murdock wrote.

Kuminga also was a DNP-CD in Golden State’s play-in game against the Memphis Grizzlies and, outside of one game, barely played in the Warriors’ seven-game series against the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs.

Kerr simply pointed to a lack of fit as the reason for Kuminga’s benching, particularly since the team’s acquisition of six-time NBA All-Star Jimmy Butler in early February.

But since Curry sustained a hamstring injury in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Kerr had no choice but to turn to Kuminga for an offensive boost without his star player.

Kuminga has been stellar since rejoining the rotation, averaging 23.7 points on 60-percent shooting from the field and 44.4 percent from 3-point range over the last three games.

The 22-year-old forward likely will continue to be a trending topic throughout the NBA world as the Warriors figure out whether their future will consist of their former No. 7 overall pick. But for now, he’s just trying to make the most of the opportunity in front of him as the Warriors hope to keep their season alive.

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When will Tatum return from Achilles injury? How NBA players fared in rehab originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jayson Tatum’s long road to recovery has already begun.

The Boston Celtics star had surgery Tuesday to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon he suffered in Monday’s Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks.

Tatum’s injury is devastating on many levels, likely costing the Celtics a chance to repeat as champions — they trail the Knicks 3-1 entering Wednesday’s must-win Game 5 — and potentially costing one of the NBA’s best players a full season of his prime (Tatum turned 27 in March).

But will Tatum miss the entire 2025-26 season? What’s the precedent for NBA players who have suffered similar Achilles injuries, and how long did they take to recover?

Here’s a look at notable NBA athletes who have dealt with Achilles injuries, how long they were sidelined, and what their post-injury careers can tell us about how Tatum may bounce back:

Klay Thompson

• Age when injured: 30
• Date of injury: Nov. 19, 2020
• Date of return: Jan. 9, 2022

Thompson had already missed the 2019-20 season due to a torn ACL when he tore his Achilles just prior to the 2020-21 season. Thompson played relatively well down the stretch for the Warriors in 2022 (20.4 points per game over 32 games) and averaged 21.9 points per game in 2022-23, his highest mark since the 2016-17 season.

The sharpshooting guard has yet to make an All-Star game since returning from injury, however, and his field goal percentage and 3-point percentage have both dipped below his pre-injury percentages.

Kevin Durant

• Age when injured: 30
• Date of injury: June 10, 2019 (Game 5 of 2019 NBA Finals)
• Date of return: December 22, 2020

Durant missed the entire 2019-20 season before returning for the Brooklyn Nets’ season opener in December 2020. (The start of the season was delayed due to COVID.)

While Durant made three consecutive All-Star teams after his injury and put up impressive counting stats — scoring averages of 26.9 points, 29.9 points and 29.1 points per game in 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23, respectively — he had trouble staying on the court, playing in 55 games or fewer in each of those seasons due to various minor injuries.

DeMarcus Cousins

• Age when injured: 27
• Date of injury: Jan. 26, 2018
• Date of return: Jan. 18, 2019

Cousins is the closest player in age to Tatum on this list, but his post-injury career isn’t encouraging. The All-Star big man was never the same after tearing his Achilles, playing just two more seasons while averaging single-digits in points and rebounds in both campaigns. He played in 89 total NBA games after his injury.

It’s worth noting that Cousins had dealt with Achilles issues in the past and is significantly bigger than Tatum at 6-foot-10, 270 pounds.

Kobe Bryant

• Age when injured: 34
• Date of injury: April 12, 2013
• Date of return: December 8, 2013

Bryant had the quickest recovery time of any player on this list, but it comes with a caveat: He played just six games in 2013-14 before being shut down for the rest of the season.

Bryant’s Achilles injury signaled the beginning of the end for his NBA career; he appeared in just 35 games in 2014-15 before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury, then played just one more season, averaging 17.6 points per game in 2015-16.

Wesley Matthews

• Age when injured: 28
• Date of injury: March 5, 2015
• Date of return: Oct. 28, 2015

Matthews is by no means a superstar, but his case offers some optimism for Tatum. Matthews needed just seven months of recovery time before returning to the court, and while his scoring average dipped slightly over the next few years, he was relatively durable, playing in at least 63 games for five consecutive seasons following his injury.

Matthews played a total of nine NBA seasons after tearing his Achilles and was 37 when he played his last game (with the Atlanta Hawks in 2024).

Dominique Wilkins

• Age when injured: 32
• Date of injury: Jan. 28, 1992
• Date of return: Nov. 6, 1992

Wilkins was one of the first NBA superstars to rupture his Achilles, but he bounced back in a big way. After just over nine months of rehab, Wilkins returned to play one of the best seasons of his NBA career in 1992-93, averaging 29.9 points per game while finishing fifth in NBA MVP voting.

Wilkins delivered another All-Star campaign in 1993-94 before slowing down in his mid-30s, playing with the Celtics, Spurs and Magic over a five-season span that included two years overseas.

Steph, Draymond send Tatum inspiring message after Achilles surgery originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The NBA world has taken turns sending well-wishes to Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum after he suffered a ruptured right Achilles in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

And after Tatum posted an update to his Instagram stating that he successfully underwent surgery to repair his ruptured Achilles, Warriors stars shared some heartfelt words to the 27-year-old.

“Get right big fella,” Steph Curry commented.

“As the story is told, it gets greater and greater brother,” Draymond Green wrote. “The bounce back will be more than amazing my dawg!”

Tatum sustained the non-contact injury late in the fourth quarter of Boston’s loss to the New York Knicks on Monday night.

Boston, who fell to 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, said Tatum’s surgery was a success and that no timetable for his return immediately was available.

Tatum was in the middle of one of the best playoff performances of his career, scoring 42 points on 16-of-28 shooting before the injury. After a dramatic collapse to the floor, Tatum was helped off the court, and cameras later showed him being taken to the locker room in a wheelchair while covering the emotions on his face with a towel.

Achilles injuries certainly hit close to home for Curry and Green, as their forever Warrior teammate Klay Thompson suffered a ruptured right Achilles in November 2020 as part of back-to-back heartbreaking injuries.

Tatum, at age 27 and closing out Year 8 in the league, certainly hopes to return to his All-NBA form upon his return.

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It was only a year and a half ago that coach Becky Hammon caught Knicks fans' ire for suggesting the team is missing a "1-A dude" required to win a championship. Just before the season, Iman Shumpert wrote off New York for lacking a player "that can go off himself in the playoffs," a sentiment backed by Alan Hahn, who thought their leader needed to become a "crunch time killer" to "complete his ascension."

This is only a sampling of the dismissiveness national talking heads have shown Jalen Brunson ever since he joined the Knicks in 2022 as a free agent to be their starting point guard. Oddly enough, none of this was heard following his 39-point, 12-assist masterclass in a Game 4, a potentially series-turning win over the defending champion Boston Celtics.

It’s unclear why it has taken some media members and die hard basketball fans so long to come around to the reality exposed by Brunson’s phenomenal performance, when he’s been doing this not-so-quietly for four years. Brunson’s stardom may have crescendoed with Monday’s upset, but the truth is, he’s been the league’s best playoff performer since long before then.

Let’s go through his recent postseason prowess...

Keen-eyed viewers caught onto Brunson’s big-game potential during the 2022 playoffs, when he scored 72 points in back-to-back wins without Luka Doncic to give his shorthanded Mavericks the early edge in a first-round series against the Donovan Mitchell-led Utah Jazz.

Dallas would advance behind a 27.8 points per game series from Brunson, and get as far as the Western Conference Finals in no small part due to his play. But it was going to the Knicks to lead the show when he really took off.

In a first round matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2023, Brunson stole Game 1 on the road with seven points in the final six minutes, including the game-sealing jumper with 35 seconds to play. He scored eight in the fourth quarter of Game 4, including a couple of pivotal threes, to help New York go up 3-1 and eventually win the series in five.

They faced the would-be finals runner-up in Miami the next round, falling in six games despite a heroic effort from Brunson. He averaged 31 points and over six assists on 50.4 percent shooting from the field and 34.7 percent shooting from three, winning Game 2 behind a 10-point fourth quarter and trying to salvage the series with a 32, 38 and 41-point games to close it out.

In his first postseason as full-time floor general, Brunson unseated a top-four seed in five games and was unguardable against an elite defense that walked through Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum the same year. Somehow, this didn’t move the needle beyond New York, so Brunson had to up himself the following year.

With a shorthanded team that only lost more players as the postseason continued, Brunson carried his squad past the reigning MVP Joel Embiid and his Philadelphia 76ers in Jordan-esque fashion last season. He put up 39 points and 13 assists in a Game 3 loss, led the Knicks to a 3-1 lead behind 47 points and 10 dimes in Game 4, dropped 40 in a Game 5 defeat, and ended the series in Game 6 with 41 points and 12 assists.

Going through each clutch shot or monster fourth quarter would be gratuitous. Brunson would break his hand as the Knicks lost Game 7 against the Indiana Pacers next series, but not before averaging 32 points and repeatedly delivering in crunch time once again, despite being every opponent’s sole focus.

Somehow, some folks were still not moved. Going into this year’s first round against the Detroit Pistons, many called Cade Cunningham the best player in the series, seemingly forgetting the entire last two Knicks runs.

Brunson would go on to average 32 points and eight assists in the series, which included a 15-point fourth quarter in Game 1, 12-point fourth quarters in Games 3 and 4, and an iconic game-winner off 40 points to advance in Game 6. This should have served as a stark reminder to the doubters, but they felt safe behind the daunting Celtics, who would surely embarrass the Knicks and expose Brunson in round two.

Not quite. Brunson was instrumental in New York’s crazy comebacks to take a 2-0 lead on the road, including goading Jrue Holiday into a shooting foul with 12 ticks left in Game 2, with him giving the Knicks the lead at the line.

Then Game 4 happened, finally catching the larger basketball world up to what Brunson’s been putting teams through these past few seasons. But to fully appreciate his impact, it needs to be taken in a historical context.

On Monday, Brunson became the highest scorer in fourth quarters through the first 10 games of a playoffs since 1997, eclipsing Kobe Bryant and Stephen Curry. He’s only the fifth player in the last 50 years to average 30 and eight through the same span.

There have been a lot of "since Jordan" stats for him, too: First since Jordan to score 40 and dish five assists in two road closeout games, first since Jordan to start a playoffs with four consecutive 30-point games, and first since Jordan to score 40-plus in four consecutive playoff games.

That’s a lot of strong company for Brunson, who’s getting a minuscule fraction of the recognition for whatever reason. A part of that is the Knicks routinely being eliminated in the second round of the playoffs, a streak that could be coming to an end this year.

If it does, and truthfully, even if it doesn’t, the questions surrounding Brunson’s fitness to lead a team in the postseason need to end. Monday’s Game 4 may have been an awakening to some people, but for those who have been watching, it was another day at the office for the league’s toughest playoff threat.