NBA Champion Jalen Brunson Kicks Off SNL Season 52 With the New York Knicks

The 52nd season of Saturday Night Live debuted with NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson as the host, who was joined on stage by his supporting lineup.

Opening his monologue, Brunson quipped that his recent 2026 NBA championship victory with the New York Knicks might closely resemble his experience hosting the show.

“I’m going to approach tonight’s hosting the same way I approach a Knicks finals game—the first three quarters will be terrible, but the final sketch will be incredible,” he said. “This summer, I helped the Knicks win the NBA championship. You’ve likely heard me talk about it, but you haven’t heard me sing about it… obviously, that’s not happening.”

He also made a lighthearted remark about returning to Madison Square Garden for the upcoming NBA season, noting that the venue recently played host to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s summer wedding.

“The new NBA season is just around the corner, and I must say, it’s going to be quite something to be back at Madison Square Garden. Just look around—it was exactly this spot a few months ago where Taylor and Travis exchanged their vows,” he remarked.

The New York Knicks captured the NBA championship in June, their first title since 1973, with Brunson earning the NBA Finals MVP award for his dynamic performance. To support his Saturday Night Live debut, the Knicks starting lineup—Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges—were all in attendance.

Brunson announced he would take questions from the audience, prompting the camera to pan over to his teammates. Towns initiated the questioning, asking, “Can you foul out of SNL?” to which Brunson replied, “No, I don’t think so.”

“Could I stay here for the entire show?” Towns followed up. Hart then candidly asked the host, “Is it true that you took a $113 million pay cut just to resign with the Knicks?”

Brunson confirmed, “Yeah, that’s pretty true.” Hart asked a follow-up question: “Wow. So is that money still up for grabs?”

The season’s first cold open humorously targeted the unlikely camaraderie between New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump. Ramy Youssef played Mamdani, while James Austin Johnson reprised his impression of Trump.

When informed he had a guest, Mamdani responded, “What reckless lunatic would travel to see me in this kind of weather?”

“Your best friend!” Johnson’s Trump declared. “I missed my first day. For some inexplicable reason, I really, really like you.” Youssef, highlighting the El Niño affecting New York City, told the fake president, “That’s very kind, but wouldn’t you rather be in D.C.? We’re in the middle of El Niño.”

“Oh, El Niño, we don’t like big stores, especially when they’re in Spanish,” Trump said. He then discussed his “crazy week”: “I kicked out the press and hung out with the president of China, Xi. And yeah, I went brunette. It’s fall!”

“There was also this crazy AI situation,” he continued. “I just had dinner with Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg, and it made me think, wow, RFK Jr. might actually be right about those vaccines.” Ashley Padilla also made a brief appearance in the cold open as Natalie Harp, executive assistant to President Trump.

Towards the end of the cold open, Youssef’s Mamdani insisted he needed to return to work. “Please let me stay here with you,” Johnson’s Trump pleaded. “OK, only if you give us $21 billion for a housing project in Queens,” Mamdani countered.

“Are you out of your mind?” Trump asked, to which Mamdani suggested, “What if I follow you back on Instagram?”

“It’s a done deal,” Johnson’s Trump concluded.

Jeremy Culhane reprised his Tucker Carlson impersonation during the Weekend Update segment, offering his takes on the summer’s box office hits. Regarding Obsession, he joked, “The left’s idea of a horror movie is that a woman is forced to love a man. ‘Oh, no, help! I’m being chased by a heterosexual relationship!’”

As for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Culhane’s Carlson quipped, “Everybody loves Spider-Man: Brand New Gender.” Colin Jost corrected him, “That’s not what it’s called,” as Culhane’s Carlson continued, “Spider-They, Spider-Them, uses whatever bathroom it feels like.”

He also mentioned Minions & Monsters, asserting he was “not talking about the children’s film, I’m talking about the Trump cabinet. That’s right, I’ve turned on Trump, I’m so brave.”

The New York Knicks star and Katseye were the first host and musical guest duo of the new season, both notably making their Saturday Night Live debuts. Next week, Dakota Johnson will host with Turnstile as the musical act.

Shane Gillis will host on October 10 with musical guest Rosalia, while Obsession star Inde Navarrette makes her SNL hosting debut during the Halloween episode, joined by Gracie Abrams.

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