Becky Hammon isn't losing sleep over a two-year-old hot take, even as Jalen Brunson leads the New York Knicks to the brink of a championship.
The Las Vegas Aces coach made waves in December 2023 when she declared on ESPN's "NBA Today" that the Knicks lacked a true superstar. When analyst Kendrick Perkins suggested Brunson could be that guy, Hammon pushed back hard.
"He's too small," Hammon said at the time. "If your best player is small, you're not winning. Steph Curry is the only dude."
Fast forward to 2026, and Brunson has the Knicks four wins away from their first NBA title since 1973. He's averaging nearly 27 points and 6.6 assists in the playoffs, silencing doubters one game at a time. But Hammon? She's not apologizing.
"I speak from experience. 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," Hammon said Tuesday during Aces practice. "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."
Hammon's stance has drawn plenty of criticism, but she's not alone in questioning whether a smaller guard can carry a team to the promised land. The debate echoes Stephen A. Smith's recent comments about Brunson's style, though the ESPN personality took a different angle entirely.
For his part, Brunson isn't getting caught up in the chatter. After clinching a spot in the NBA Finals on Monday night, the Knicks star kept his focus squarely on the bigger prize.
"It's something I haven't really put into perspective and thought about because we're still writing our story," Brunson said.
That story has been remarkable so far. The Knicks have defied expectations at every turn, and Brunson has been the engine driving their resurgence. His leadership has inspired teammates and fans alike, with his wife Ali sharing an emotional message after the team reached the Finals.
Hammon, a former WNBA star and longtime NBA assistant, knows a thing or two about winning. She's led the Aces to back-to-back championships and understands what it takes to get over the hump. But her comments highlight a persistent debate in basketball: can a team built around a 6-foot-2 point guard truly dominate?
History suggests it's rare. Curry is the exception, not the rule. Iverson came close but fell short. Brunson is now on the verge of joining Curry in that exclusive club, and Hammon says she's ready to eat crow if he pulls it off.
"If he proves me wrong, he proves me wrong," she said.
The NBA Finals tip off on June 3, and all eyes will be on Brunson to see if he can finish the job. Whether or not he does, one thing is clear: he's already proven a lot of people wrong.
