Jalen Brunson is getting paid by the New York Knicks, but not necessarily as much as he could have.
The Knicks All-Star has agreed to a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, before being eligible for a five-year, $269 million deal next summer. The difference in those deals is $113 million in guaranteed money.
Brunson was already under contract for next season with a salary of $25 million, with the ability to opt out in 2025.
It’s a little more complicated than Brunson simply giving the Knicks a nine-figure discount, though. As Wojnarowski explains, Brunson will be receiving $37.1 million less over the next three years, but his fourth year is a player option. If he decides to opt out, Brunson will reportedly be eligible for a four-year, $323 million deal in 2028 or a five-year, $418 million deal in 2029.
That would be part of why Brunson is taking a pay cut now, but his deal still definitely helps the Knicks keep their burgeoning contender together after signing OG Anunoby to a five-year, $212.5 million deal and trading nearly every first-round draft pick possible for Mikal Bridges.
One of Brunson’s fellow Villanova Knicks sees his deal as the point guard being a team player.
So Brunson is doing his team a favor and potentially himself a favor down the line as well, assuming he’s still a star in 2028 when he’ll be 31 years old.
This deal is the latest in a Knicks offseason that has generated no shortage of hype. The team did lose standout center Isaiah Hartenstein to the Oklahoma City Thunder in free agency, but the retention of Anunoby means the team will be able to double down on a core that looked like one of the best teams in the NBA when the trade-deadline acquisition was healthy.
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The addition of Bridges also enhances the team’s defensive identity while giving them another player who can complement Brunson on offense, as Bridges did for three years while at Villanova.
The main drawback of this offseason was concerns about financial flexibility in the future. Fortunately, Brunson was willing to help them out.
Acquiring Jalen Brunson has been one of Knicks’ best moves ever
Two years ago, the Knicks managed to persuade Brunson to leave the Dallas Mavericks for a four-year, $104 million contract to play in Madison Square Garden, losing a second-round pick in the process after the NBA determined they tampered with him.
No one’s complaining about that lost pick now, because signing Brunson already looks like one of the best moves in Knicks history.
After four seasons of operating as a complementary piece to Luka Dončić at best, Brunson blossomed into one of the best guards in the NBA once given the reins with the Knicks. His value goes beyond the court as well, as a leader for the team’s Villanova-heavy young core under head coach Tom Thibodeau.
At roughly $26 million per season, there were few better bargains in the NBA than Brunson’s contract, and now he is helping the team out even more.
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