Jalen Brunson calls out Dirk Nowitzki with a roast from 40 years ago

Jalen Brunson just finished delivering another defining performance for New York Knicks when he decided to take it easy and make an emphatic statement about his conference. A few moments later New York won 124-113 via the San Antonio Spurs at NBA Cup championship game in T-Mobile Arena, Brunson was aiming for a long-term idea that the Eastern Conference lacks the bite of the West. I’m standing next to a Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki on the NBA on Prime postgame set, Brunson he couldn’t resist playful stroke.

“It’s harder than people make it out to be,” Brunson said. “I know you’ve been in the West your whole career. You lost to a team from the East in the finals… 40 years ago.”

Jalen Brunson, on the claim that the Eastern Conference is weak, continues to point to Dirk and says, “It’s harder to give people credit. I know you’ve been in the West your whole career. You lost to an Eastern team in the finals… 40 years ago.”

Haslem says that every team… pic.twitter.com/vO99v0PR0R

— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) December 17, 2025

The line landed immediately. Nowitzki laughed. Like the rest of the panel. But underneath the humor was a message that fit the Knicks’ moment and season.

Jalen Bernson played for the Knicks in the NBA Cup Finals

Brunson confirmed these words by winning the NBA Cup Most Valuable Player award after scoring 25 points, eight assists and four rebounds. It was another milestone for the player who became the unmistakable face of the new Knicks franchise.

The exchange carried extra weight given the shared history between the two. Brunson spent his first four NBA seasons in Dallas and was a starter during Nowitzki’s final 2018-19 campaign. When Brunson left the Mavericks in 2022 to sign a four-year, $104 million deal with New York, skepticism followed him back east.

Nowitzki was among the doubts.

“When you went to New York, I wasn’t sure this was going to work,” Nowitzki said earlier this season. “I’m super proud of you. I’ve never seen you score 30 points in a night.”

Brunson did more than score. He changed the expectations around the Knicks. New York posted back-to-back 50-win seasons, reached the Eastern Conference Finals last year for the first time since 2000 and now owns its first NBA Cup title.

In his first season under coach Mike Brown, Brunson averaged 28.8 points and 6.4 assists while leading one of the league’s most consistent teams. The Knicks entered Sunday with one of the best records in the East, and that reflected their confidence.