Has a human being ever had a better year than Jalen Brunson? The NBA star led the New York Knicks to their first NBA Championship since the early 1970s, launching an entire summer of celebrations in the city. He was also voted Finals MVP, got to appear in a well-received WWE segment as a longtime fan and continued crushing family life with his high school sweetheart wife and baby daughter. Oh and now he’s hosting Saturday Night Live.
The popular sketch comedy show dropped its first four hosts of the season in a social post this afternoon, and Brunson was tapped for the season premiere. I would say the pick is a shock, but it actually makes a ton of sense. SNL has a long history of inviting buzzy athletes and a long history of doing business with celebrities and politicians who are uniquely buzzy in New York. Brunson is both of those things, and his media appearances have shown him to be deceptively charismatic when he wants to be.
The pick will also potentially give the show a chance to show off some other celebrities and New Yorkers, as well. The most obvious choices are, of course, Brunson’s New York Knicks teammates. When Derek Jeter hosted, he brought along a few of his fellow New York Yankees, and I think there’s a strong likelihood Brunson will do the same thing with Karl Anthony Towns (who joined him in his WWE appearance), OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges and maybe more. Those guys would be a huge ovation, even if it was just for a brief cameo during the monologue.
There’s also a unique chance with a Brunson hosting appearance to play into all of the celebrities who are New York Knicks superfans. Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler, Tracy Morgan, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Chris Rock and Larry David are all huge Knicks fans who previously worked on the show. Other supporters who regularly sit courtside like Spike Lee, Jerry Seinfeld, Taylor Swift, Timothée Chalamet, Mariska Hargitay and Fat Joe have all hosted or made cameos on the show already too. There’s definitely an opportunity here for the show to play into that and make a big splash at the same time by incorporating some of these people into a sketch with Brunson, playing off their well known fandoms.
Regardless, I’m happy for Brunson. He seems like a really genuine and relatable person, and however things go for him and the Knicks moving forward, he’ll be a beloved celebrity in the city for the rest of his life. It’s only fitting he gets his moment on the Studio 8H stage. Besides, there’s a chance he could be amazing. Athletes like Peyton Manning and Charles Barkley have been terrific during their guest stints.
Apart from Brunson, SNL has some other heaters come too. Brunson will serve as the show’s first host on September 26th, and he’ll be followed by Dakota Johnson (October 3rd), Shane Gillis (October 10th) and Inde Navarrette (October 31st). They’ll be joined by musical guests in order: Katseye, Turnstile, Rosalîa and Gracie Abrams.
Expect to get a finalized cast list, as well as more details about the next season in the coming days before it officially hits the TV schedule on September 26th.
