Knicks’ Jalen Brunson weighs in on latest round of CJ McCollum drama

CJ McCollum has quickly become public enemy number one in the collective eyes of the New York Knicks fanbase. The Atlanta Hawks guard not only stole Games 2 and 3 from the Knicks with herculean performances in the clutch, he’s also now kicked Jalen Brunson in the midsection twice this series — the first time being in Game 1, and the second time being in the Knicks’ 126-97 win in Game 5 of their first-round series to take a 3-2 lead.

It’s not quite clear if McCollum is doing this intentionally. But during his jumpshot motion, he extends his leg, which has then landed squarely on Brunson’s groin. The Hawks guard received a technical foul for this in Game 1, but in Game 5, the motion may not have been as pronounced.

Appears that CJ McCollum kicked Jalen Brunson in midsection again: pic.twitter.com/5SpAiOOtXw

— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) April 29, 2026

Nevertheless, the Knicks star, who had his way with the Hawks defense by dropping 39 points on 15-23 shooting from the field, is taking the high road and is not letting this simmering action between him and McCollum fester into something worse.

“I don’t think anything of it,” Brunson said point blank in his postgame presser, via SNY’s Knicks Videos on X (formerly Twitter).

Jalen Brunson was asked about CJ McCollum potentially kicking him in the midsection again in tonight's game and what he thinks of it:

"I don't think anything of it" pic.twitter.com/NsijXZbCmD

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 29, 2026

Brunson simply may have just let his game do the talking instead of engaging in a war of words that would do the Knicks no good, especially when they were in an advantageous position all night in Game 5 against the Hawks.

The Knicks star was exceptionally dominant in Game 5, as he was an unstoppable force in the second half. In the final two quarters, Brunson dropped a total of 22 points as he erased any ideas of a comeback from the Hawks’ head.

New York has definitely woken up after being rocked in Games 2 and 3, and momentum is certainly on their side as they look to make it at least to the second round of the NBA playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.

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