Brunson joins elite group with 40-point playoff streak

Jalen Brunson's first-round vanquishing of the Philadelphia 76ers has placed him in esteemed company.

By dropping a game-high 41 points against Philadelphia on Thursday, the New York Knicks' starting point guard became just the seventh different player in NBA history to record three straight playoff games with 40-plus points.

Brunson's record-hot stretch is joined by a notable group of names in the all-time books. Denver Nuggets star guard Jamal Murray was the last player with an identical three-game streak in the playoffs. The list also includes Michael Jordan, who had a three-game streak with 40-plus points in three separate postseasons, courtesy of Stathead.

Brunson, 27, scored 40 points in Game 5, but the Knicks failed to close out the series with a 3-1 lead at home. He had arguably his best performance of the series in Game 4, erupting with 47 points on 18-of-34 shooting (52.9%) to help the Knicks go up 3-1 in the series. The Villanova product was far from as efficient in the first two games of the series, however; he scored 22 and 24 points in Games 1 and 2, respectively, but shot a combined 16-of-55 (29.1%) from the floor.