Knicks avoid catastrophic injury as Jalen Brunson diagnosed with knee contusion

The New York Knicks lost leading scorer Jalen Brunson to an injury early in Sunday's 107-98 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

But the Knicks are breathing much easier after the All-Star guard was diagnosed with a left knee contusion. Coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters after the game that X-rays were negative.

Brunson played only 47 seconds when he went up for a shot. He appeared to be in pain as he leapt and then grabbed his left knee and hopped several times after landing before he fell to the court. Brunson stayed there as play continued and fell again as he tried to hop to the sideline. He needed to be helped off the court.

Replays showed he had a possible collision with teammate Isaiah Hartenstein seconds before he took the shot.

The Knicks announced that he was questionable to return because of a sore left knee. The team later ruled him out for the rest of the game.

Knicks forward Josh Hart had a triple-double (13 points, 19 rebounds, 10 assists) and guard Donte DiVincenzo had a game-high 28 points in the victory.

Brunson, who's in his second season with the Knicks, was named an All-Star for the first time this season.

He leads the Knicks with 27.7 points and 6.7 assists per game.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks' Jalen Brunson suffers knee contusion against Cavaliers