Time to catch up on the latest Knicks news…
🏀 Jordan Brink, who began his career with the Pistons in 2016 and joined the Knicks in 2023 under Tom Thibodeau, is leaving New York to join Tiago Splitter’s staff in Chicago. Brink will be an assistant coach and the director of player development for the Bulls.
Over the past two years, Brink was the man with the iPad in his hand, tasked with making split-second decisions to initiate coaching challenges. He was incredibly successful in the role, as New York posted a 78.2% success rate in 2024-25, which was the highest in the NBA.
Arguably, Brink’s most consequential and impactful call came in the closing moments of Game 2 of the 2026 NBA Finals. New York was up 14 points with eight minutes remaining in the contest, but the Spurs went on a spirited run, tying the score at 97 apiece.
With under three minutes remaining in regulation, the shot clock running down, the crowd going wild and the Knicks desperate to stop San Antonio’s momentum, Landry Shamet found OG Anunoby in the corner. OG pumpfaked and then went up for a three-pointer. Julian Champagnie hit OG on the wrist, but didn’t call the foul, instead saying the ball went off Anunoby, giving possession to San Antonio.
Brown looked down the bench at Brink, who instantaneously instructed his head coach to challenge the call. Brown sprinted onto the court to get the officials’ attention and trigger a review.
The call was overturned, and OG was awarded three free throws, nailing them all.
New York went up 100-97 and hung on for a 105-104 victory.
That Game 2 moment may go down as one of the biggest challenges in franchise history.
“He’s been doing this now two years in a row,” Brown said of Brink after that game. “I rely totally on him. Every once in a while I lose my mind, get emotional, and try to stick it to the refs, even though I like all of them. But that never works. So, I try like heck to follow Jordan’s lead, and it was 100 percent his call.”
Brink will be missed, but the opportunity with the Bulls is a promotion, and, as a Chicago native, he’ll be closer to home.
🏀 While we’re here, quick shoutout to OG, who made so many big shots in big spots this past postseason. He finished the 2026 playoffs with 22 points in the clutch, the third-most in the NBA, trailing only Jalen Brunson and Victor Wembanyama. And, remarkably, Anunoby shot 54.5% from the floor and 60% from three-point range in clutch situations.
Over his three years in New York, OG has been incredibly efficient in the clutch in the postseason:
13-of-22 from the field: 59%
6-of-9 from downtown: 67%
It’s impossible to overstate how important that trade for Anunoby was… It helped set the title run in motion.
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