The New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers are grateful to have All-Star guards they can count on in crunch time.
Those stars will be on display Friday when Jalen Brunson and the Knicks visit Tyrese Maxey and the Sixers in NBA Cup action.
The Knicks won the 2025 NBA Cup, followed by the NBA Finals about six months later. They now come into their 2026 Cup opener with momentum.
After losing its first three games, New York has posted back-to-back wins. Most recently, the defending champions notched a 133-127 road victory over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday as Brunson had 38 points and seven assists.
The Knicks used a 10-2 fourth-quarter run to take control and outscored the Bulls 43-31 overall in the final period.
“I was happy to be able to kind of finally get over that hump,” Brunson said. “I feel like I was putting a lot of unnecessary commentary in my head. But seeing the ball go in the way it did, it put me out of my mental state and put me in a good flow state.”
Brunson was 4 of 20 from 3-point range in his first four games, prior to shooting 6 of 10 from beyond the arc against Chicago.
“I wasn’t worried about that,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “He just seems like he always finds a way. And (Wednesday) we needed every single one of those. It definitely wasn’t a concern of mine.”
OG Anunoby contributed 23 points for New York, while Karl-Anthony Towns added 19 points and 13 rebounds. The headliner, though, was the reigning Finals MVP.
“An MVP-caliber basketball player,” Brown said. “I hope he gets recognition for that this year because his will is off the charts.”
Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse authored similar comments about his star guard after the Sixers’ most recent game — a 114-109 triumph over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday. Maxey scored 27 points, including two 3-pointers in the final two minutes.
“Sheer determination,” Nurse said, adding that Maxey “hung in there on both ends of the floor and obviously made some big shots down the stretch.”
Philadelphia has won four of its first five games, including a six-point victory in New York on opening night. The Sixers came back against the Knicks in that game and trailed the Pacers by 13 points after three quarters Wednesday.
“It’s certainly a good experience for us to get in these situations and to deliver, for the most part. … It’s good to get tested on this stuff,” Nurse said. “The more you get into these things, the more you succeed. The confidence will build.”
The Sixers are expected to rest LeBron James or Joel Embiid on Friday. Whichever veteran plays will likely sit Saturday against the Charlotte Hornets as Nurse looks to manage their workload.
That will put more responsibility on Adem Bona and Dean Wade, who combined for one point and two rebounds in 21 minutes against the Pacers.
“If you’re missing some of your size … it obviously becomes a problem and all five guys have to rebound,” Nurse said this week. “I look at the numbers there and the defensive rebounding, no matter the position, just isn’t good enough, so everybody has to chip in with a few more. That’s got to be the answer, for sure.”
