Becky Hammon Doubles Down on Controversial Jalen Brunson Remark

The New York Knicks are headed to the NBA Finals for the first time in 27 years after sweeping the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals behind superstar guard Jalen Brunson.

Brunson was named Eastern Conference Finals MVP, and his success leading the Knicks brought renewed attention to past comments made by current Las Vegas Aces head coach and former NBA assistant Becky Hammon.

Two years ago, Hammon stated that Brunson was "too small" to be the best player on a championship team.

"He's too small. If your best player is small, you're not winning," Hammon said at the time, while citing Stephen Curry as the exception.

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Hammon was asked about those comments again on Tuesday amid criticism surrounding her previous stance, and she largely stood by them while still praising Brunson as a player.

"I speak from experience," Hammon said. "Allen Iverson got MVP and he lost in the Finals. I think the two best teams are probably in the West, but I'm up for being proven wrong. That's the other thing, I think Jalen Brunson's a hell of a player, a hell of a player. I'm speaking historically on the NBA with what I said. I don't know why everybody's so stuck on that. I said it two years ago.

"I said what I said. If he proves me wrong, he proves me wrong."

Brunson earned All-NBA Second Team honors this season after averaging 26.0 points and 6.8 assists per game while leading the New York Knicks to the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.

If he can guide New York to a championship over either the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder, it would mark the franchise's first NBA title since 1973.

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This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 11:02 PM.