There is no grave concern bubbling (yet) in Dallas about the Knicks’ hiring of Jalen Brunson’s father Rick to join Tom Thibodeau’s coaching staff. It has been known throughout the league that Thibodeau has wanted Rick Brunson on his staff from the moment he joined the Knicks entering the 2020-21 season and not because it will help New York lure Rick’s son Jalen Brunson away from the Mavericks in free agency this summer.
What’s the buzz on Twitter?
Marc Berman @NYPost_Berman
Rick Brunson’s #Knicks hiring has been long in the making so don’t read too much into it. Rick and Jalen Brunson have had a close but complicated relationship but Rick just wants his son to earn his market value #NBA #Mavericks nypost.com/2022/06/02/kni… – 8:31 AM
Rick Brunson’s #Knicks hiring has been long in the making so don’t read too much into it. Rick and Jalen Brunson have had a close but complicated relationship but Rick just wants his son to earn his market value #NBA #Mavericks nypost.com/2022/06/02/kni… – 8:31 AM
CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
Knicks adding Rick Brunson, father of free agent Jalen Brunson, to coaching staff, per report
cbssports.com/nba/news/knick… – 6:23 PM
Knicks adding Rick Brunson, father of free agent Jalen Brunson, to coaching staff, per report
cbssports.com/nba/news/knick… – 6:23 PM
Marc Berman @NYPost_Berman
#Knicks hiring Jalen Brunson’s dad Rick Brunson as assistant coach but don’t read too much into it. He’s Thibs guy #NBA nypost.com/2022/06/02/kni… – 4:34 PM
#Knicks hiring Jalen Brunson’s dad Rick Brunson as assistant coach but don’t read too much into it. He’s Thibs guy #NBA nypost.com/2022/06/02/kni… – 4:34 PM
Josh Newman @Joshua_Newman
The Knicks getting ready to overpay Jalen Brunson feels like a 2003-17 Knicks move. – 4:00 PM
The Knicks getting ready to overpay Jalen Brunson feels like a 2003-17 Knicks move. – 4:00 PM
More on this storyline
One source said Thibodeau wanted him on the Knicks staff from the get-go, but there was concern from some in upper management about his controversial departure from Minnesota when he was reportedly was accused of harassment. Another league source said Brunson turned down the position because he wanted to wait until his son was settled on his second contract after being a second-round pick of Dallas in 2018. -via New York Post / June 2, 2022
The Knicks are finalizing a contract with Rick Brunson, the father of Jalen Brunson, to become an assistant coach on Tom Thibodeau’s staff, SNY has learned. Brunson, a nine-year NBA veteran, has been an assistant coach under Thibodeau in Chicago and Minnesota. The deal is expected to be finalized in the coming days, per people familiar with the matter. The 49-year-old fills a spot on the Knicks bench created when former assistant Kenny Payne left to become head coach at the University of Louisville. -via SportsNet New York / June 2, 2022
Current NBA fans may know Brunson as the father of Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson, whom the Knicks had been interested in prior to the trade deadline. Brunson is an unrestricted free agent. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and general manager Nico Harrison have said that the team wants to re-sign Brunson. -via SportsNet New York / June 2, 2022