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Jalen Brunson didn’t take Sunday’s post-game altercation between his father, New York Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson, and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo too seriously.
“It was words of affirmation,” Jalen said after the contest, per ESPN’s Chris Herring.
As DiVincenzo was greeting his former teammates at the end of the Knicks’ 115-110 preseason victory, he needed to be separated from Rick as the two exchanged words.
In the first quarter of the game, DiVincenzo was also seen shouting towards New York’s bench while taking a pair of free throws.
“That’s what happens when they let you run the show,” DiVincenzo said, via Herring.
The Timberwolves guard explained the situation with the opposing sideline after the game.
“I’m not there anymore, I play competitive, I wear my heart on my sleeve and that’s all it was,” DiVincenzo told reporters.
The Knicks also played a tribute video for DiVincenzo and Timberwolves forward Julius Randle prior to the game. They were traded to Minnesota in a blockbuster deal involving Karl-Anthony Towns on Oct. 2.
While DiVincenzo shared some words with Jalen’s father, he said after the game that it still doesn’t affect his relationship with his former teammate.
“My relationship with Jalen, that’s my brother and my best friend,” DiVincenzo said, per Herring. “That’s a separate relationship. I’ll talk about that privately, and figure everything out. But it is what it is.”
DiVincenzo thrived against his old team on Sunday, scoring 15 points and dishing out seven assists in 27 minutes on the floor. He shot 6-11 from the field and connected on two of his four attempts from behind the arc.
The Knicks and Timberwolves will face off for the first time in the regular season on Dec. 19.
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