"Worth It": Jalen Brunson Has No Regrets About Sacrificing $113 Million for a Knicks Championship

Jalen Brunson could have earned an additional $113 million and perhaps won a championship elsewhere someday. But it was the uncertainty surrounding that possibility that led him to sacrifice the bigger payday and commit to New York, firmly believing that this group could bring the city its first championship in more than five decades. Now that he has done exactly that, winning Finals MVP in the process, Brunson admitted he would not have regretted the decision either way.

"100 percent worth it," Brunson said in a conversation with reporter Malika Andrews, who asked him if missing out on the extra cash was worth it now that he was an NBA champ. "Even if we didn't achieve this, I feel like being able to do that and grind and go on a journey to try and achieve it would have been worth it as well.

But this is definitely the cherry on top," he added.

In 2024, when Brunson became eligible to sign an extension to remain in New York, he re-upped a $156 million, four-year deal. If he had waited until 2025 to re-sign with the Knicks, he would have been eligible for a $269 million deal over five years.

The 6-foot-2 guard took a $113 million pay cut, which gave the front office plenty of flexibility. It allowed them to sign talents like Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, and OG Anunoby.

The Knicks' stacked roster played a major role in securing the title, and that depth would not be possible without Brunson.

In the Finals, Anunoby was the second-best scorer for New York, averaging 21.2 points per game on a 50 percent shooting clip from downtown. He was also causing problems on defense, with 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks.

Towns put up 13.0 points and a team-high 10.6 rebounds per game. He was one problem the San Antonio Spurs could not figure out, as he led the Knicks in +/- with 8.8.

Bridges, meanwhile, became a valuable floor spacer every time he was on the court, averaging 10.4 points on a 42.1 percent success rate from beyond the arc.

They are the only three players, outside of Brunson, to average double-figure scoring against San Antonio. And collectively, they beat the Spurs 4-1 to send the city of New York into a frenzy.

Jalen Brunson Has Proved Becky Hammon and Draymond Green Wrong

Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon said in 2023 that Jalen Brunson was not fit to be a leader. Not because he lacked skill, but because he lacked size.

Since he was a shorter player, Hammon claimed that he could not be the number one option for a team that wanted to win a title.

When the Knicks made the Finals this year, she stood by that statement. She cited Allen Iverson as an example, saying that while he was a tremendous player, he ultimately failed to win a title.

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green later backed up Hammon's comments. During an episode of his podcast ahead of the NBA Finals, the four-time NBA Champion challenged Brunson to "prove him wrong."

Well, proving them wrong was exactly what Brunson did through five tough NBA Finals outings.

He averaged 32.6 points per game against the Spurs, the highest mark of any player in the 2026 NBA Finals. Brunson also played a key role as a facilitator, averaging 4.6 assists per game, tied with teammate Josh Hart for the most assists in the series.

His defense was also impactful, averaging 2.0 steals per game, which also led the series.

Beyond the stats, Brunson also took over when needed the most. Every time the Knicks needed a clutch basket, he was their go-to guy. More often than not, he made those shots.

Thanks to those contributions, he earned his first-ever Finals MVP award. Green also apologized to him for those comments after Game 4, where Brunson scored 36 points.

"I want to tell you now because I want to tell it to your face, and then I'll say it publicly after… I'm sorry. Then I will say it when you go and get your ring: I apologize," the Warriors star said on his podcast.