Donte DiVincenzo finished off his best season with his longest performance, a potential playoff series near his hometown, and the announcement from his girlfriend that they recently welcomed a baby boy.
Not a bad day for the 27-year-old.
DiVincenzo exceeded reasonable expectations by setting a franchise single-season record with 283 3-pointers, and on Sunday he made a career-high 55 in 53 minutes in a 120-119 overtime win over the Bulls. He achieved that record by scoring 25 points on a book trey.
He sat for about 30 seconds at the end of the first quarter, returned to the start of the second, and never returned to the bench.
“It was actually okay,” DiVincenzo said of his minutes, which broke Evan Fournier’s Knicks single-season 3-second record. “Right now we’re in the playoffs and we’re all locked in and there’s no continuity.”
With the No. 2 seed secured, the Knicks will face the winner of Wednesday’s play-in game between the No. 7 Sixers and No. 8 Heat.
On Instagram. Screen capture via X/@NBA_NewYork
If it were the Sixers, DiVincenzo, a Delaware native, would likely play in Villanova, where he is near family and college.
“Oh, that’s right. [it would be cool]” DiVincenzo said. “Family is right there. So obviously we… [myself, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart] Attended school in Philadelphia. So no matter who you play against. But it would be fun in Philadelphia. ”
DiVincenzo’s girlfriend Morgan Calantoni posted a photo of their newborn baby on Instagram Sunday afternoon.
“Life is so much more fun when I’m with you,” Calantoni wrote.
Brunson recorded his 11th 40-point game of the season on Sunday, tying him with Patrick Ewing for second in franchise history.
Bernard King still holds the record for scoring 40 points in 13 games in 1984-1985.
Brunson emerged as a front-runner for MVP and should have been named to the All-NBA second team, but he averaged 28.7 points and shot 48 percent from the field. He was the third-most Knick in points per game in a season, behind only Carmelo Anthony. Only King (32.9) and Richie Guerin (29.5).
Asked to reflect on his campaign, Brunson said, “It’s not over yet, so I’ll evaluate it when it’s over.”
Tom Thibodeau, assistant coach for Jeff Van Gundy’s Knicks, compared Brunson to Ewing.
“When Jeff hired me on my first day in the middle of summer, it was 9 a.m. and Patrick was already at work,” Thibodeau said. “Patrick wasn’t running around telling people how hard he was working. It was seen every day. If you were new to the organization, you would say, ‘This is how we do it.’ .
“I think the same thing applies. [with Jalen]. Once we signed Jalen, he hit the gym right away. He could come any time in the summer, but he’s coming at the same time. Full speed, great focus, no fake gram or instagram or whatever you call it. ”
It’s worth noting that Branson has an Instagram account and a podcast.
