Becky Hammon's Old Comment About Jalen Brunson Resurfaces After Knicks' Loss

Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon is receiving a ton of apologies this Friday from NBA fans.

Back in December 2023, Hammon said the New York Knicks were stuck in the middle of the Eastern Conference because they don't have "a dude" to lead their roster. Kendrick Perkins argued that Jalen Brunson can be the No. 1 option on a championship team, but Hammon wasn't having any of it.

"He's too small," Hammon said. "If your best player is small, you're not winning. Steph Curry is the only dude."

Knicks fans have criticized Hammon an awful lot for that take, especially since Brunson led the franchise to the Eastern Conference finals in 2025.

That being said, countless people are changing their tune this season since the Knicks are down 2-1 in its first-round series with the Atlanta Hawks. They had a chance to steal a win in Game 3, but Brunson coughed up the basketball in the closing seconds.

That game-sealing turnover from Brunson led to fans demanding apologies for Hammon.

"The apology to Becky Hammon should be as loud as the disrespect was on her when she said this about Jalen Brunson," one fan said.

"A lot of people owe Becky Hammond an apology," a second fan wrote on social media. "The truth was always clear as day."

"I lowkey need every single Knicks fan to come online if they lose this series and apologize to Becky Hammon," another fan declared. "They killed her and 3 years later she's still cooking with that take."

"Becky Hammon I'm sorry for violating you," a Knicks fan wrote. "We're not winning with him."

Knicks' season is on life alert.

The Knicks will now enter Game 4 on Saturday with a do-or-die mindset. They can't afford to be down 3-1 heading back to Madison Square Garden.

"We gave ourselves a chance, knowing that we didn't play our best basketball, so it should sting," Knicks coach Mike Brown said. "We need to feel it and get ready to be locked in for the next game, which we will be."

Tipoff for Game 4 of the Knicks-Hawks series is set for 6 p.m. ET on Saturday.

Copyright The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This story was originally published April 24, 2026 at 2:06 PM.