Where Jalen Brunson Already Ranks Among All-Time Point Guards
With the Knicks winning the 2026 NBA Championship and Jalen Brunson putting on a legacy-defining performance the way he did, it really helped cement the 30-year-old point guard’s legacy. He won in college and then at the professional level. Throughout his career, he has really shown that the clutch gene exists, and some players have it while others do not.
For the three-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA Second Team player, those might not be insane accolades, but he has something that so many legends do not have, and that is a title with a Finals MVP under his belt. In this article, I am going to break down a few tiers of point guards, past and present, and where Brunson sits among them. So, let’s get into it.
Tier 1: Who Brunson Is 100% More Proven Than Already
These are a few players who, if Brunson were to retire today, no question, he would rank higher than all time.
Gilbert Arenas
Terry Porter
Rod Strickland
Baron Davis
Rajon Rondo
Isaiah Thomas
Penny Hardaway
Stephon Marbury
Lenny Wilkens
Tim Hardaway Sr.
Gus Williams
Sam Cassell
Derrick Rose
Kyle Lowry
This is a list of players who, no question, Brunson has already had a better career than. Basically, all of his accolades since 2024 have put him above these guys. The NBA Championship is a big separator because not only do very few of these players have a ring, but you also have to look at the role they played to get them.
Lowry and Rondo are the only two players with an NBA championship on this list. While Lowry definitely played a significant role in 2019 for the Raptors, Rondo had a much more limited role in his titles, especially in 2020 with the Lakers.
This is a list of guys who all had different careers. Guys like Lowry and Rondo may lack some of the individual accolades, while players like Derrick Rose and Isaiah Thomas had much shorter peaks and lacked longevity. The two closest on this list to Brunson, no question, are Penny Hardaway and Derrick Rose. Other than those two guys, there should be no debate that if Brunson retired today, he would rank higher all time.
The good thing is Brunson is not retiring today, so we can move forward to Tier 2 of the list.
Tier 2: Brunson Is on Pace to Pass Them
These are some players who I believe Brunson will end up ranking higher than all time when it is all said and done, assuming a career-altering switch-up does not happen.
Chauncey Billups
Allen Iverson
Damian Lillard
Jo Jo White
Gus Williams
Maurice Cheeks
Walt Frazier
Dennis Johnson
This is a very interesting tier, in my opinion, and maybe the hardest one to put together in the entire article. Three names that stand out here are Chauncey Billups, Damian Lillard, and Walt Frazier.
Starting with Billups, Brunson has similar accolades to him. They both have a Finals MVP, and Brunson could end up having around the same amount of All-Star selections when it is all said and done. Billups did not have a lengthy peak, so that is what could eventually put him behind Brunson.
Damian Lillard is a very intriguing one. He has so many accolades, including nine All-Star selections. The thing that makes Brunson different from Lillard, though, is that Brunson rose to the occasion in June in a way Lillard never did. Lillard’s best playoff run was leading the Blazers to the Western Conference Finals, while Brunson and the Knicks made the Eastern Conference Finals in 2025. That means Lillard’s deepest playoff run would already only match Brunson’s second-deepest run.
You can definitely argue that Brunson has had a better supporting cast, but Lillard also had some nice pieces around him throughout the prime of his career.
As of now, Brunson is probably recognized by some as better than Walt Frazier due to recency bias, but also because the performance Brunson put on in the 2026 NBA Finals was generational. The biggest thing Frazier still has on Brunson is his two NBA titles. Even if Brunson does not win another championship, he still will more likely be regarded as better than Frazier and could overtake both him and Willis Reed as the greatest player to ever put on a Knicks uniform.
Tier 3: Brunson Needs Another Ring and Finals MVP to Be in the Discussion
Brunson is still 30 years old, so he definitely has some great years ahead, barring some unpredictable circumstances. If he somehow gets another title and Finals MVP, he would certainly have an argument to pass the players I am about to list. Even if that does not happen, if he continues adding great accolades over the next three to five years, he will definitely be in the discussion with some of these guys all time.
Some players who fit into this category are:
Kyrie Irving
Chris Paul
Russell Westbrook
Steve Nash
Gary Payton
Tony Parker
John Stockton
This is a list of players who overall had lengthy and excellent careers. Players like Tony Parker were some of the best point guards ever at understanding their role and impacting their teams at the highest level. Parker especially stands out because he won four NBA championships and a Finals MVP.
Others like Steve Nash, Chris Paul, John Stockton, and Russell Westbrook are more of a long shot because of the elite individual accolades they put up. However, if Brunson were to win another title and Finals MVP, he would be 2-0 in those categories compared to those players. While they were all generational talents, winning matters a ton when discussing NBA legacies.
It is very interesting to think that if Brunson were to somehow repeat what he did last season, he could enter the conversation with these guys. Obviously, that is a long shot, and so much would need to happen, but it is definitely doable. Time will tell on that matter.
Tier 4: The Knicks Need a Dynasty for This to Even Be a Discussion
For Brunson to even be in a conversation with these players, the Knicks would probably need two or three more championships within the next five seasons, along with much better regular-season accolades for Brunson. These guys are very much long shots, and I do not see Brunson ever passing most of them, but never say never.
Isiah Thomas
John Stockton
Stephen Curry
Oscar Robertson
Magic Johnson
Jalen Brunson should still have plenty of years left in his career, but sometimes peaks are short, so who knows? It is crazy to think about how high Brunson could climb on the list of all-time point guards if the Knicks ripped through next season and won one more title.
With the Knicks sitting at around +900 odds to win the NBA Championship this upcoming season, that is not a crazy number by any means, especially if they are tied for the third-best odds behind the Thunder and Spurs. We are talking about roughly +900 odds for Brunson to potentially add the accomplishment that could ultimately put him higher all time than some of the legends I listed in Tier 3.
Let that sink in. +900 is still a long shot, but it is definitely possible. We will see come spring and into summer, if it can actually happen.
Eli Saari
@ThatManChe On X
@SSN_NBA On X
@Sidelines_SN On X
Comments