Jalen Brunson Says He's Fully Cleared After Offseason Wrist Surgery
The reigning Finals MVP is a green light for opening night. Here's what a healthy Brunson means for your fantasy build after a 40.5 FPTS/G actual last season.
Full health at a #30 overall price tag is a bargain worth grabbing.
- Fully cleared after July wrist surgery
- 26 pts, 6.8 ast in 74 games (2025-26 actual)
- 40.5 FPTS/G last season (2025-26)
- Our rank #30 overall, #14 at guard
- Knicks open Oct. 5 at the 76ers
Jalen Brunson is good to go. Speaking at a live edition of the Roommates Show he co-hosts with teammate Josh Hart, the Knicks guard told the crowd he's fully cleared after the wrist surgery he underwent in July. That's the cleanest injury news a fantasy manager can ask for heading into a new season.
The context matters. Brunson played through the injury for most of the postseason, banging out 28 points and six assists per game before dropping 45 in the Finals clincher to earn Finals MVP. He logged 74 games with 26 points, 3.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists last season (2025-26), good for 40.5 fantasy points per game and a #30 overall finish in our rankings — #14 among guards. He did all of that with a bad wrist.
The Health Picture
Brunson said the surgery happened this offseason and that recovery was pegged at roughly two months. Do the math from a July procedure and you land comfortably ahead of the Oct. 5 opener on the road against the 76ers. He revealed he first hurt it late in a Game 2 win during the East Finals — 19 points in 40 minutes — and gutted out the rest of the run anyway.
That's the part draft rooms should chew on. The version of Brunson who posted a top-30 fantasy season was compromised. A healthy wrist for a guard who lives at the elbow and pull-up game is not a small detail — it's the difference between his floor and a real ceiling bump.
The Fantasy Fallout
For managers, Brunson at a #30 overall tag now looks like value rather than a fair price. The counting stats were already elite for a guard, and the injury that dragged on all spring is gone. Don't overthink the wrist noise in draft chatter — treat it as a buy-low window before the market catches up.
One roster note: Josh Hart quietly slipped, finishing #89 overall (#44 at guard) on 30.4 fantasy points per game across 66 games last season (2025-26), and he's trending down — his last five games ran 9.7 points below his season average. Draft Hart as a rebounds-and-assists specialist, not a rising asset, and let Brunson be your anchor.
