Back in the summer of 2024, Jalen Brunson did something very few stars ever do. He took less money so the New York Knicks could build a better team around him. A lot of people around the league thought he had made a wrong decision.
Two years later, that call looks like the best one of his career. The Knicks are NBA champions for the first time in more than 50 years, and Brunson was the Finals MVP. Now, the payback for that sacrifice may finally be on its way.
Polymarket Hoops shared the latest on X, passing along a report from The Athletic's Fred Katz about what Brunson's next contract could look like. "Jalen Brunson is projected to land a MASSIVE 4-year, $290 MILLION extension when his new contract kicks in during the 2028-29 season," Katz wrote. Katz also laid out the timeline in his piece for The Athletic.
"In 2028-29, Jalen Brunson's new contract will begin," Katz wrote. "All signs point to the NBA Finals MVP earning a significant raise, a projected $290 million over four years." That would push Brunson's yearly salary past $70 million. It's a long way from 2022, when his four-year, $104 million deal with New York was called an overpay.
Part of why that number feels earned is what he gave up. In 2024, Brunson signed a four-year, $156.5 million extension instead of waiting a year for roughly $269 million. That left about $113 million on the table.
The Knicks turned that extra room into a title run. It's also why the front office has played it careful this offseason, with Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart still without extensions as New York tries to stay under the second apron. Brunson already gave the Knicks a ring.
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