NEW YORK — With less than four minutes on the clock in the fourth quarter and the Knicks down two, New York point guard Jalen Brunson drove the lane, then kicked the ball out as the defense collapsed, finding an open Buddy the Cat in the corner.
With Boston forward Jason Tatum closing the distance, Buddy slid both feet behind the three-point line and sank a clutch shot, giving the Knicks their first lead since the second quarter.
The Madison Square Garden crowd, already boisterous, launched into a deafening cheer.
“MVP! MVP! MVP!” Knicks fans chanted, dubbing the superstar feline the league’s Meowst Valuable Player.
New York guard RJ Barrett found Buddy with a no-look pass on the next possession and the 10lb cat sailed through traffic toward the rim, banking a layup to put his team up by three.
“Buddy now, driving and conniving, dishing and swishing at the basket,” Knicks color commentator Walt “Clyde” Frazier said. “A serendipitous fourth for the frisky feline.”
Earning defensive stops on the next two possessions, the Knicks extended their lead to six on a three-pointer by forward Julius Randle, forcing the Celtics to foul Buddy on the next possession to stop the Knicks running down the shot clock.
Buddy iced the free throws, then sank another pair after a Boston timeout to give him a career-high 47 points to go with one rebound, eight assists and 11 steals.
“If you’re [Knicks coach] Tom Thibodeaux, you’ve gotta like what you’re seeing from Buddy the Cat,” play-by-play man Mike Breen said.
Frazier agreed, piling on the superlatives.
“Buddy’s been magnetic and energetic, giving the Knicks strong two-way play with the matador D and splendiferous form as he displays omnipotence on the offensive end,” Frazier said.
The tabby cat’s career performance earned accolades from Knicks fans and players alike on Twitter.
“Buddy the Cat straight cookin’ the Celtics!” Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell tweeted.
“Y’all see this cat? Unreal!!!” tweeted Ja Morant, the explosive point guard for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Not every player in the league was impressed, however.
“Let him try that move toward the rim on me,” said Lakers forward Lebron James, who has a 6 foot height advantage on the tabby. “I’ll swat that ball all the way to Chairman Xi’s house in Beijing.”
Frazier, who was the floor general for the Knicks the last time the franchise won an NBA championship in the 1970s, said Buddy is an essential component in the team’s promising core of young players.
“You don’t see a player like that every day, folks,” Frazier said. “A grandilomentitudinous performance that thrillified Knicks fans!”
Buddy is averaging 20.7 points, 0.7 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 6.2 steals per game on the season, and is currently the top-rated player at his position in fantasy basketball rankings.
Pain In The Bud 
What an athlete! How will Buddy celebrate this occasion?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha after I published the post, I sat down to add the photo to Instagram, and Bud came up to me purring. So I rubbed his head and said “Who scored 47 points? You did! You’re a baller, Bud!”
And he responded with his familiar “Brrrrrrttt!”
As for celebrating, he’ll do it by eating turkey, of course.
LikeLiked by 1 person
LOTS of turkey!
LikeLiked by 1 person
TURKEY!!!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I don’t see Spock anywhere! Where is Kirk? No, its all wrong! That orange planet they are chasing around must be Klingon!
Sincerely,
Spunkmeyer
LikeLiked by 1 person
Now that you mention it, I did create a series of images of cats wearing Star Trek uniforms using the Dream natural language processor AI. I just haven’t gotten around to writing a decent story for them yet.
If you’d like, you can email me a photo of Spunkmeyer at paininthebud at gmail dot com and I’ll try to make an image of him in a Star Trek uniform. No guarantees that it’ll come out good, but you never know!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Would LOVE to see Buddy and other cats in Star Trek uniforms! LOVE Mr. Spock especially. HUGE crush as a kid. 🤣🤣🤣
LikeLiked by 1 person
Have to get him in a better photo! He does have a SPECTACULAR face or that’s what he told me! Give me a day or so for when he is in the MOOD! Ok? Thank you!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Got your photos, thanks! So here’s the deal: The system won’t allow me to use “Maine Coon” as a descriptor in any prompt because the latter word is included in its blacklist, to avoid abuse. (Since the word, by itself, can be used as a racist insult.)
Unfortunately those controls are coded into the algorithm.
I can try to work around that, but if you have a photo more clearly centered on Spunkmeyer’s face, that would be helpful too. Thanks!
LikeLike
I am trying to get his picture here! I am so not smart!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
By the way, I obviously made up the quotes, but that is actually the way Walt “Clyde” Frazier talks when he does commentary on Knicks games. Clyde is 77 years old, was the point guard who led the Knicks to their last championships in the early 1970s, and has been calling games for decades. My earliest memories of watching basketball involve Clyde calling games back in the 90s.
Here’s a video in which you can hear him rhyming and using ridiculous words:
Here’s Walt talking about how NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom gave him a Gucci gift certificate for Christmas:
Finally, Walt is also known for his outrageous fashion sense and the unique suits he wears, a trend that started more than 50 years ago when he was a player. Here’s an article about him and his suits, with photos so you can see how hilariously ridiculous they often are…note the leopard print and tiger print suits:
https://hoopshype.com/gallery/walt-frazier-and-his-incredible-suits-over-the-years/
LikeLike
HURRAH fore Buddy!!! Xtra Turkey all around!
***Hi-5’ss*** BellaDharma an ((hugss)) BellaSita Mum
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, this is an incredible story! The Knicks fan base really showed their love and enthusiasm for Buddy with their MVP chant. It’s amazing to see how far Buddy has come in his basketball career! My question is: What kind of obstacles has Buddy had to overcome to become the Meowst Valuable Player?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Well, his height would be a big one. At least than a foot tall, Buddy could be easily blocked and can’t get many rebounds, but he does have great leaping ability to partially make up for it. He’s also had to overcome anti-cat bias.
But as long as he’s promised large amounts of turkey after the game, he’s motivated to work hard. He can never have enough turkey.
LikeLike