Jalen Brunson is expecting the New York Knicks to finally pay him his worth on his next contract after a $113 million sacrifice led to the 2026 NBA Championship.
Brunson went from being overpaid when he signed as a free agent in 2022 with the Knicks on a four-year, $104 million deal to being underpaid when he signed a four-year, $156.5 million extension.
Now that his contract sacrifice allowed the Knicks to pay his co-stars and win an NBA Championship, he hopes the franchise will reward him correctly on his next contract extension.
Jalen Brunson is in line for a $300 million extension with the Knicks
ESPN’s Vince Goodwill appeared on ‘The Hoop Collective’ podcast and discussed Brunson’s future with the Knicks, making it clear that the reigning Finals MVP will look to recoup what he sacrificed on his last contract when he’s eligible for an extension in the summer of 2027.
“Jalen Brunson is going to come get all his money. He signed a year early; he could’ve signed for a $100 million more by signing later. Every dollar, $280 or $300 million, he’s supposed to get next summer, he’ll get all of that.”
The 2026-27 season will be the second year of Brunson’s $156.5 million extension he signed in 2024.
He’ll be extension-eligible next summer, where he’d play the 2027-28 season for $40.5 million as per his current contract, but have the first year of his $280-300 million extension kick in in 2028-29.
If Brunson waits till the end of the 2028-29 season and enters free agency before signing his extension, he could be eligible for a contract up to $400 million after 10 years of service.
This assumes he retains All-NBA level form to be supermax eligible in 2029, so a better bet would be for him to sign the biggest possible extension next summer to secure his long-term money as an undersized guard entering his 30s.
Brunson can ask for whatever he wants, and the Knicks organization will have to give it to him, given his status as a New York legend who brought a title to the city after a 53-year wait.
Brunson’s pay cut allowed core teammates like OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and Josh Hart to get lucrative contract extensions with the franchise.
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