Jalen Brunson had already signed a new contract with the Knicks when he visited Yankee Stadium last month and met Aaron Judge on the field.
At the time, Judge presented the star guard with a pair of autographed cleats that read, “Keep Running Through the Streets.”
Judge didn’t know Brunson would soon become a team captain, but now that he is, the centerfielder has a different message.
“I would tell him to follow the same advice I was given,” Judge said Thursday when asked what he would say to Brunson at the stadium. “That was, ‘Don’t try to do too much. Keep doing what you’re doing.’ What he’s done so far with the Knicks puts him in a position to be a captain: Keep working hard.'”
Like Brunson, Judge was already considered the de facto captain of the Bronx before signing a nine-year, $360 million contract in December 2022.
But this massive deal now gives Judge the official title.
Now that Brunson has signed a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension, he and Judge are in similar situations.
Judge said his job in the clubhouse hasn’t changed much despite the added role.
And he insisted he didn’t feel any extra weight on his shoulders.
“I don’t think so,” Judge said. “It’s certainly a nice title, and I’m sure he would say the same thing, but I’ve got to focus on what I do on the court, on the field, and not think about anything else.”
Judge also understands the importance of being captain in New York.
“This is probably one of the greatest accomplishments of my life,” Judge said. “It definitely means a lot to me and my family, and I know it means the same to him.”
Judge was one of several current and former New York Knicks captains who appeared in a video congratulating Brunson at his news conference on Thursday, two days after Brunson was officially named captain of the Knicks.
In addition to Judge, Derek Jeter, David Wright, John Franco, Aaron Rodgers, Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, Eli Manning, Mark Messier and Brian Leetch, along with former Knicks captain Allan Houston and Knicks legend Walt Frazier, also delivered messages to Brunson.
