Jalen Brunson Reveals Knicks’ Message Amid Comeback Vs. Celtics

It would have been easy for the Knicks to throw in the towel Monday night at TD Garden.

A heavy underdog in Game 1 against Boston and the teams’ second-round NBA playoff series as a whole, New York faced a 20-point deficit midway through the third quarter in the best-of-seven opener. Even though 3-pointers weren’t falling for the Celtics, the reigning champions appeared on the verge of hammering down the final nail in the visitors’ coffin.

But the Knicks refused to say die and staged a remarkable late-game comeback that forced overtime on Causeway Street. New York had all the momentum at that point and secured a 108-105 victory that stole home court from Joe Mazzulla’s side.

After dropping 29 points in his team’s impressive triumph, Jalen Brunson revealed the rallying cry that galvanized the Knicks’ surge.

“We told each other to just keep believing; keep firing. Keep sticking together and chipping away,” Brunson told reporters, per ESPN. “There wasn’t going to be a 20-point shot, so we had to keep chipping away possession by possession.”

Monday’s result surely was empowering for the Knicks, who were swept by the Celtics in the rivals’ regular-season series. Tom Thibodeau’s group now knows for sure that it can hang with Boston, which might not be at 100% anymore after entering Game 1 with a clean bill of health.

The Eastern Conference foes will meet again Wednesday night, with tipoff set for 7 p.m. ET.