Knicks Fans Angry After Jalen Brunson’s Ankle Injury in Magic Loss

The New York Knicks’ five-game winning streak ended in the worst way possible. They lost their first home game of the season to the Orlando Magic — and to make things worse, star guard Jalen Brunson hurt his ankle late in the fourth quarter.

The injury happened when Jalen Brunson drove to the basket and rolled his right ankle on the way down. He limped off the court and later left for the locker room. After the game, head coach Mike Brown said Brunson had “rolled his ankle” but didn’t share more details. The team will run more tests to find out how bad it is.

Before getting hurt, Brunson played great again, scoring 31 points and adding six assists. Still, the Knicks’ offense wasn’t clicking. During their five-game win streak, they averaged over 130 points per game. Against the Magic, they only managed 107, with just 42 in the first half.

The Magic also dealt with their own injury issues. Their star forward Paolo Banchero left the game in the second quarter with a groin injury. Early reports say it’s not serious. With Banchero out, Franz Wagner stepped up big, scoring 28 points to help Orlando hand the Knicks a 114–107 loss at Madison Square Garden.

But the main concern for Knicks fans wasn’t the loss — it was seeing Jalen Brunson leave on crutches after the game. Many fans are angry at Coach Mike Brown for leaving him in the game when the Knicks were already down by double digits.

“Mike Brown leaving him in down 16 with a minute left? What was he thinking?” one fan posted online. Another added, “Brunson shouldn’t have been out there. The game was over.”

Some fans, however, defended the coach, saying the injury was just bad luck. Brunson landed on Wendell Carter Jr.’s foot, which caused the sprain. “It was a freak accident,” one fan wrote. “You can’t blame the coach for that.”

Even so, many fans believe Brown should have rested Jalen Brunson once the game was clearly lost. For now, the Knicks can only hope their star guard’s injury isn’t too serious.

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