Former NBA guard Rick Brunson, father of New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson, is seen during his brief 1998 PBA stint with Gordon’s Gin, the Ginebra franchise, in the Governors’ Cup. Brunson played one game as an import, finishing with 21 points, five rebounds and seven assists.
Before the Knicks captain became one of the NBA’s biggest guards, his father Rick Brunson made a brief Philippine basketball stop with Gordon’s Gin
Jalen Brunson is now one of the defining guards of his NBA generation: a New York Knicks captain, a two-time NCAA champion from Villanova and a second-round pick who became the face of one of basketball’s most demanding franchises.
But Filipino basketball fans have a fun fact to add to the Brunson story.
Long before Jalen became a Knicks star, his father, Rick Brunson, played briefly in the Philippine Basketball Association. The elder Brunson, now an assistant coach with the Knicks, suited up as an import for Gordon’s Gin, the Ginebra franchise, during the 1998 PBA Governors’ Cup.
It was a cameo, not a long PBA career. Rick Brunson appeared in one game, a do-or-die elimination matchup against Formula Shell on Nov. 6, 1998. In that lone outing, he finished with 21 points, five rebounds and seven assists before being replaced as the team’s import.
For Filipino fans, the detail lands because of the team involved. Gordon’s Gin was part of the Ginebra line, one of the most followed franchises in Philippine basketball, then guided by legendary playing-coach Robert Jaworski. Even brief imports can remain part of the country’s basketball memory, especially when they passed through Ginebra.
The connection became more charming years later, when Jalen Brunson visited Manila with Team USA for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup. Asked about his father’s brief PBA appearance, the younger Brunson appeared surprised to learn that Rick had played in the Philippines before him.
That moment gave Filipino fans a local thread to one of the NBA’s most prominent current players: Jalen Brunson was not the first Brunson to play on Philippine soil.
Rick Brunson’s larger career was in the NBA. Undrafted out of Temple, he worked his way into a nine-year NBA career and appeared in 337 regular-season games. After his brief Philippine stop, he returned to the United States and became part of the Knicks team that reached the 1999 NBA Finals.
Jalen has since built a far larger basketball profile of his own. He won national titles at Villanova, began his NBA career with Dallas, signed with New York in 2022 and was named the Knicks’ 36th captain in 2024.
The PBA footnote does not define Jalen Brunson’s career. It simply gives Filipino fans a small, delightful claim on the family story.
