NBA

Jalen Brunson tells Knicks teammate Josh Hart to delete his number after TMI exchange

Who knew that breast milk would be the reason Jalen Brunson cut phone ties with Josh Hart?

The Knicks teammates had NBA Twitter in disbelief over their latest social media exchange that began Tuesday.

“Have yall ever tasted yall significant others breast milk? Asking for a friend,” Hart asked his 500,000-plus followers.

Brunson then replied, “Nah bro no BS delete my number.”

Hart and his wife, Shannon Phillips, welcomed twin boys earlier this month — with the 28-year-old guard nearly missing the Knicks’ season-ending loss to the Heat in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Although the Twitter banter was all in good fun between the close friends, who played together for two seasons at Villanova, Brunson wasn’t the only one who raised an eyebrow at Hart’s message.

Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart of the New York Knicks look on during Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals 2023 NBA Playoffs against the Miami Heat. NBAE via Getty Images

Enter Stephen A. Smith.

“My brother…what the hell,” the “First Take” host replied to Hart — adding that he needed a few hours to process the statement before discussing it further on his podcast, “The Stephen A. Smith Show.”

Some were perhaps a bit more understanding.

“Sick conversation 😂 heard it goes down like almond milk 😂,” Pelicans star CJ McCollum, who welcomed a baby with wife Elise Esposito in Jan. 2022, tweeted in response.

Kings scorer De’Aaron Fox, who became a dad in Feb. 2023, seemed to know how it all happened.

“I’m actually not surprised you asked the question less than a month in,” he wrote.

Fellow ESPN personality Dan Orlovsky also noticed the tweet and appeared to relate to Hart, writing in response, “100%.”

Josh Hart and his wife Shannon Phillips after the birth of their twin sons in May 2023. Instagram/Josh Hart

Hart had a tough decision before Game 6 of the conference semifinals when he got a call from Phillips’ doctor, who notified him that his wife was in labor, according to ESPN’s Malika Andrews.

At the time, Hart had contingency plans in place with help from Knicks superfan, actor Al Palagonia, and the team.

“They made sure they had helicopters on standby, a private plane on standby, a police escort just in case they needed it when they got the call,” Andrews said.

Josh Hart and Shannon Phillips in May 2022. Instagram/Shannon Phillips

On the morning of Game 6, Hart got the call and raced to the airport, only for the doctor to tell him that he would not make it in time for the birth of the twins.

Hart then turned around and went back to his hotel in Miami, where the Knicks had a makeshift Zoom call set up so that he could be with Phillips remotely.

Hart finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and an assist in the 96-92 loss that eliminated New York from the playoffs.

Shannon Phillips at Madison Square Garden in February 2023. Instagram/Shannon Phillips

Hart and Phillips married at 1 Hotel South Beach in August 2021.

The high school sweethearts from Maryland tied the knot in an intimate 30-minute ceremony that featured a choir and an orchestra, according to Southern Bride.

Hart proposed to Phillips at the Elms Mansion & Gardens in New Orleans while he was still with the Pelicans. 

The Knicks acquired Hart from Portland in a four-team trade with Charlotte and Philadelphia before the NBA trade deadline in February.