New York Knicks fans may have slept through one of the ultimate nightmare scenarios.
The Knicks missed out on a major statement victory on Thursday night-into-Friday morning against the Los Angeles Lakers but they were also forced to bid an early farewell to Jalen Brunson.
The metropolitan franchise face was forced to leave Thursday's game at Crypto.com Arena with an apparent ankle injury in the latter stages of an overtime period, one that eventually ended with New York on the wrong end of a 113-109 decision.
Jalen Brunson hurt landing on Austin Reaves pic.twitter.com/bwIuWfYuOa
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) March 7, 2025
Brunson, who put up a 39-point, 10-assist double-double in defeat, appeared to roll his right ankle while going for a driving double against Austin Reaves in the extra session. At the time, the Knicks were down by two and looking to earn what would've been their most monumental victory of the season.
Brunson stayed on the ground and writhed in pain while the Knicks training staff attended to him and was granted a few extra moments to recover after Los Angeles challenged a foul call against Reaves. He stayed in the game to sink the awarded free throws before retreating to the visitors' locker room after his teammates gave a foul. Los Angeles won the game by a 113-109 final, dooming the Knicks (40-22) to their second consecutive loss after leading by as much as 13.
Knicks fans might not have to wait long for an immediate update on Brunson as the team immediately returns to action against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night in Inglewood (10:30 p.m. ET, MSG).
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