That’s all for tonight. Thanks for following along with us and be sure to read Tom Dart’s report from the Knicks’ long-awaited title clincher.
Wembanyama: 'We dominated for most of the series'
“What I’m pissed about is that there’s probably a hundred games before we can be back in the finals,” Victor Wembanyama said after watching the Knicks celebrate a championship on his home floor. “I’m going to have to hold that inside of me and slow down and wait and execute for a hundred games.”
The disappointment was evident as his thoughts turned to the long road back. So was the perspective.
Wembanyama described the defeat as “the biggest lesson of my life”, saying the Spurs’ run to the NBA finals had provided more growth than any period he could remember, both individually and as a team.
“I don’t think we could have learned more and gained more experience in one playoff run and in one season,” he said. “It’s been hard and full of lessons.”
The 22-year-old repeatedly returned to a theme that haunted San Antonio throughout the series: the razor-thin margin for error against a championship-caliber opponent.
The Spurs led in all four of their losses and appeared to control large stretches of the series, including a 29-point advantage in Game 4 before suffering the largest collapse in NBA finals history. Yet Wembanyama said New York consistently punished every mistake.
“Our domination stints are absolute,” he said. “We absolutely dominated for most of the series. But our errors, our mistakes, are punished so hard that we can’t have ups and downs like this.”
Asked whether it was difficult to accept that even some of basketball’s all-time greats needed years to win a championship, Wembanyama did not hide his frustration.
“It’s painful,” he said. “But I’m not running away from that. I’m using it to fuel me.”
If there was a silver lining for the Spurs, it was the experience gained by one of the youngest teams ever to reach the finals. Wembanyama said there was “no better experience” than what San Antonio had just lived through. The challenge now is turning those lessons into something more.
For Wembanyama, that process starts with carrying the memory of Saturday night through the long months ahead.
“I’m not satisfied with not winning,” he said.
The long wait is over and New York is celebrating accordingly. Thousands of Knicks fans have taken to the streets on Saturday night after the team’s victory over the Spurs delivered the franchise’s first championship in more than half a century.
Updated
Johnson: 'The better team won'
The Spurs’ first NBA finals appearance of the Victor Wembanyama era ended in familiar fashion on Saturday night. San Antonio surrendered leads in all four losses, including a 29-point advantage in Game 4 that became the largest blown lead in finals history.
“We weren’t ready to win an NBA championship,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “The better team won.”
Johnson said there was no single explanation for the collapses.
“We did a lot of good things, and we didn’t finish the job,” he said. “There can be rebounding. There can be end-of-game details. There can be starting the game where you get the lead and then you don’t sustain that.”
Even in defeat, Johnson emphasized how far his young team had come. Few outside the organization expected San Antonio to reach the finals, and the coach said both pride and disappointment could coexist.
“I don’t think anybody other than the people in that room expected us to be here,” Johnson said. “There’s a lot of good in that. There’s a lot of pain in what just happened. Both things can be true.”
Johnson repeatedly pointed to the inexperience of a roster led by playoff newcomers. Wembanyama was making his postseason debut, while rookies Dylan Harper and Carter Bryant played key roles during the Spurs’ run to the finals.
“Teams that have been in this space before typically have a group of people that have played together for some time,” Johnson said. “These guys are going through that for the first time.”
He praised Harper and Bryant for embracing what it means to be a professional and said Wembanyama’s leadership had grown “tremendously” throughout the season.
“I think he’s stepped into every moment with the appropriate amount of fearlessness and also respect for the moment,” Johnson said.
The message to Spurs fans was simple: this is not the end of the story.
“We’re not going to flinch, blink, waver,” Johnson said. “We’ll be better.”
Long before they became NBA champions together, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges helped turn Villanova into a college basketball powerhouse. Hart, Brunson and Bridges were all part of the Wildcats team that won the 2016 NCAA championship. Two years later, after Hart had moved on to the NBA, Brunson and Bridges returned to lead Villanova to a second national title.
On Saturday night, they became champions again, helping deliver the Knicks’ first NBA title in 53 years.
The Villanova connection has become one of the defining stories of New York’s championship run. Brunson emerged as the face of the franchise and NBA finals MVP. Hart supplied his trademark energy and edge. Bridges arrived in a blockbuster trade that was questioned by some observers when New York surrendered a haul of draft picks to acquire him.
After the final buzzer, Hart had a simple response.
“Forget them picks. Forget them picks, dog. We here.”
For Bridges, the moment was about more than the three former Wildcats.
“I called these two my brothers ever since I’ve been with them at Villanova,” he said. “But it’s great to call all these other guys my brothers too. Without them, we wouldn’t be here.”
A decade after first sharing a locker room on Philadelphia’s Main Line, Hart, Brunson and Bridges have added an NBA championship to their collective basketball story.
Updated
“This is everything I dreamed of,” Brunson says while accepting the NBA finals MVP trophy. “This is why I came to New York.”
Asked what’s behind the Knicks’ ability to come from behind time and again, he says: “I don’t know. For some reason, I feel like the game for us starts 30 minutes later than it’s supposed to. We didn’t show up at 8:30. We showed up at 9 o’clock.”
James Dolan, the much-maligned Knicks owner, finally has the championship that eluded the franchise for more than five decades. “Hey, New York,” he says during the trophy ceremony. “I’m sorry it took so long, but here we are and hopefully it won’t take that long again!”
Team president Leon Rose then opens up about the Knicks’ championship run.
“There aren’t really words you can put into what these guys have done, the character that they have, the fight they have, the grit they have, the never-say-die attitude,” he says. “It’s incredible. Incredible, the run they’ve been on.”
He’s asked about the team’s close-knit culture and how he constructed it."
“Just by caring about each other,” Rose says. “Just by caring about each other and making sure that we all look out for one another, have each other’s back, sacrifice and do it for the greater good.”
Jalen Brunson has been named the NBA finals MVP after averaging 32.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists across five games, leading the franchise to its first championship since 1973.
The Knicks won the championship in the fourth quarter. New York entered the final period trailing 72-65 before outscoring San Antonio 29-18 over the final 12 minutes. The Spurs shot just 31.8% in the quarter and scored only 18 points.
Victor Wembanyama filled up the box score but never took over the game. The Defensive Player of the Year finished with 19 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks, but shot just 7-for-19 from the field and scored only three points in the fourth quarter.
The free-throw line proved decisive. The Knicks attempted 28 free throws to San Antonio’s 18, with Brunson alone earning 15 trips to the stripe. New York made eight more free throws than the Spurs in a four-point game.
Josh Hart did Josh Hart things. The Knicks wing posted 13 points and 11 rebounds, finishing a team-best plus-15 while doing much of the dirty work that has defined New York’s championship run.
Jalen Brunson: 'I'm in awe'
Jalen Brunson put together a NBA finals MVP performance when New York needed it most. The Knicks’ talisman poured in 45 points, including 29 after half-time and 15 in the fourth quarter alone. He accounted for nearly half of New York’s offense in the title-clinching win.
He’s overcome by emotion as he conducts an on-court interview with ESPN.
“I don’t know what I’m feeling,” says Brunson, fighting back tears. “I’m just like, I’m in awe. I don’t know. Whenever someone counted us out, we found a way to come back and do something about it.”
He adds: “My confidence comes to my work ethic. Every time I had the ball, all I could think about is all the hours in the summer for every summer I had since I ever could remember making this a reality. So whenever I had the ball, I’m just thinking about just being alone in the gym.”
Asked what this team shows about heart, Brunson is to the point.
“We’re going to find a way. Whatever you put in front of us, we’re going to find a way. It doesn’t matter. Does not matter whatsoever. We’re going to find a way every single time we step on this court. Every time. Every time.”
Updated
The Knicks are NBA champions for the first time in 53 years!
For the first time since 1973, and just the third time in their 80-year history, the New York Knicks are NBA champions. A franchise that spent decades wandering through false dawns, rebuilding projects and one playoff heartbreak after another finally reached the summit on Saturday night, defeating the San Antonio Spurs to capture their first title in 53 years.
Led by Jalen Brunson and a resilient supporting cast that repeatedly defied the odds throughout the postseason, the Knicks completed a journey that transformed New York into a basketball-obsessed city once again. From packed bars and crowded sidewalks to celebrations outside Madison Square Garden, Knicks fever gripped the five boroughs like few sporting moments in recent memory.
Final: Knicks 94-90 Spurs
Wembanyama misses a three, Anunoby grables the rebound and it’s over!
Knicks 94-90 Spurs, 0.08, 4th quarter
Harper is fouled immediately. He misses the first. Then tries to miss the second deliberately so Wembanyama can get the offensive board but Anunoby grabs the rebound and is fouled. Anunoby misses the first. Then Anunoby makes the second.
Knicks 93-90 Spurs, 0.09, 4th quarter
Eight second elapse before the Spurs foul Mikal Bridges, who’s only taken four free throws in these finals. There are 8.8 seconds left. He misses the first, then knocks down the second. San Antonio use their final timeout and will inbound from the front court. Expect the Knicks to foul before the Spurs can set up for a three.
Updated
Knicks 92-90 Spurs, 0.16, 4th quarter
The Spurs inbound to Wembanyama, who misses a three-pointer off the front of the rim, only for Castle to come in for the tip jam. It’s his first field goal of a nightmarish 1-for-10 shooting night and it cuts the Knicks’ lead to two points with 16.3 seconds to go. Knicks to inbound after the San Antonio time-out.
Knicks 92-88 Spurs, 0.20, 4th quarter
Hart misses a three that would have put the Knicks ahead by five. Then Harper misses a driving lay-up for the Spurs. The Spurs immediately foul Hart, who goes to the line for two. He makes the first, then he misses the second ... but Robinson gets the offensive rebound! Spurs foul Anunoby and he makes the first but misses the second. Vassell manages to corral that rebound and calls timeout but the Knicks lead by four with 20.0 seconds left. Surely they can feel it now!
Knicks 90-88 Spurs, 1.05, 4th quarter
Brunson misses a shot off the side of the backboard and the Knicks are called for a shot clock violation. The Spurs have the ball with a chance to tie. Harter hits from eight feet and we’re tied. But Brunson answers from 11 feet and he’s got 45 points!
Knicks 88-86 Spurs, 1.53, 4th quarter
Wembanyama is called for goaltending on an Anunoby attempt and the Knicks go ahead by three. The Spurs have missed nine of their last 10 shots. Towns is called for a foul on Wembanyama and that’s his sixth. He’s out of the game. Wembanyama to the line for two shots. He misses the first, then he makes the second. Two-point game.
Knicks 86-85 Spurs, 3.40, 4th quarter
Vassell hits a desperately needed mid-range jumper to end the New York run and put San Antonio back in front, but Brunson draws a foul while shooting a three with the shot clock nearly expired. Three foul shots for Brunson and he makes them all. Brunson has 43 points, the most ever score by a Knick in an NBA finals game, and New York go ahead by one. It’s their first lead since the opening minutes.
Updated
Knicks 83-83 Spurs, 4.48, 4th quarter
Brunson with another lay-up! That’s 40 for Brunson and 10 straight for the Knicks and the game is tied!
Knicks 81-83 Spurs, 5.18, 4th quarter
Brunson surges to the rim and is hacked in the act by Champagnie. He makes them both and the Knicks are within a basket with more than five minutes to go. It’s an 8-0 run for New York over the last three minutes.
Knicks 79-83 Spurs, 5.30, 4th quarter
Another sensational lay-up by Brunson with Wembanyama defending him. The lead is down to four. Champagnie loses the ball and Brunson recovers it, but Towns misses a three. The Spurs really need to slow things down and get a good possession here. And it’s an offensive foul on Wembanyama! But this is going to be immediately challenged by Mitch Johnson, who believes Wembanyama was pushed by Towns. (A suspicion that slow-motion replay appears to confirm.)
And the challenge is successful. Towns has picked up his fifth personal foul and both teams are out of challenges.
Knicks 77-83 Spurs, 7.14, 4th quarter
Brunson deposits a driving lay-up that gets the Knicks within six and San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson immediately calls time-out. That’s 34 points for the former Villanova star.
Knicks 75-83 Spurs, 7.43, 4th quarter
Brunson is again fouled while shooting a three as Castle picks up his fourth personal. The Knicks’ floor general misses the first but makes the others to cut the San Antonio lead to eight points.
Meanwhile, Dylan Harper continues to make history. The Spurs rookie has become only the fourth player to score 20 or more points in consecutive NBA finals games, joining Alvan Adams (1976), Tom Heinsohn (1957) and Joe Fulks (1947).
Knicks 71-80 Spurs, 8.51, 4th quarter
Bridges and Shamet hit three-pointers for the Knicks on either side of a Wembanyama dunk to cut the San Antonio advantage to six points. But Vassell immediately delivers a much-needed response from beyond the arc to stretch it to nine. Brunson, on the bench for a breather, will be coming back in the game after the New York timeout.
End of 3rd quarter: Knicks 65-72 Spurs
The Knicks close the third quarter on a 10-2 run over the last two minutes to get within seven points. Clarkson’s jumper with 40 seconds left is, remarkably, their first bench points of the night.
The Spurs finally started hitting threes in that period. Champagnie (two), Vassell (one) and Harper (one) combined for four triples in the frame after San Antonio shot just 6-for-21 from deep in the first half. The Knicks’ ball security was crucial in keeping them within touching distance: they committed just one turnover in the quarter after nine in the first half.
Updated
Knicks 61-70 Spurs, 1.26, 3rd quarter
After the teams exchange a couple of foul shots, Hart drains a 26-footer from the top of the key to trim the San Antonio lead to 12 points. Brunson is then fouled by Harper in the act of shooting a three and makes all three free throws to get it down to nine. He’s scored 14 of his 30 points in the third period.
Knicks 53-68 Spurs, 3.06, 3rd quarter
Harper hits a three to put the Spurs back up a dozen. The 20-year-old rookie is the Spurs’ leading scorer in an NBA finals elimination game. Moments later he goes to the line to split a pair of free throws. Then, with Wembanyama on the bench, Harper grabs his own rebound on the ensuing possession and puts it back to extend the San Antonio lead to 15 points. That’s 21 points off the bench for Harper. Six straight points for the first-year guard and nine straight for the Spurs.
Knicks 53-62 Spurs, 5.18, 3rd quarter
The Spurs answer the Knicks’ scoring run with a 7-3 burst of their own. Brunson hits a three while getting fouled by Wembanyama but it’s not called. The Knicks star is irate. Wembanyama was fortunate to avoid a flagrant foul there. Had it been upgraded, he would have reached the threshold for an automatic suspension in a potential Game 6. Brunson has every reason to be furious given the injury risk, the optics and the possible impact on the series.
Knicks 50-55 Spurs, 6.27, 3rd quarter
Brunson scores his 21nd and 22nd points with a driving finger roll lay-up late in the shot clock, then Anunoby muscles his way to the goal for a difficult bucket following a Harper miss. It’s a 9-2 run for the Knicks over the last two minutes and Spurs coach Mitch Johnson doesn’t like what he sees. Timeout, San Antonio.
Knicks 46-53 Spurs, 8.06, 3rd quarter
Wembanyama stretches the lead to 12 points with a nine-foot turnaround jumper. But the Knicks rattle off five straight through Bridges and Brunson to cut it to seven.
Updated
Knicks 41-51 Spurs, 9.29, 3rd quarter
The teams trade baskets: a Bridges floater, a Champagnie three, a Brunson pull-up from 12 feet. Then Mitchell Robinson, who subbed in for Towns, fouls Wembanyama as he converts a running dunk and it’s upgraded to a flagrant after an official’s review. Wembanyama converts the free throw and the Spurs get the ball. Champagnie makes a three-pointer and it’s a rare six-point possession for San Antonio.
Knicks 37-42 Spurs, 11.45, 3rd quarter
Only 15 seconds elapse in the third quarter before Karl-Anthony Towns is whistled for his fourth personal foul. He immediately heads to the bench.
A drought-busting championship is 24 minutes away – or perhaps a little farther. Either way, Knicks fans across New York have settled in for another nerve-racking night.
Half-time: Knicks 37-42 Spurs
Vassell twists and turns before depositing a nifty basket at the half-time buzzer and the teams will head to the locker room with the Spurs ahead by five.
The Knicks somehow cut a 16-point deficit to five despite shooting under 30%. New York went into half-time within touching distance of San Antonio even though they shot 13-for-44 (29.5%) from the field and scored only six points in the paint. The biggest reason? Jalen Brunson, who scored 16 of New York’s 37 first-half points. No other Knick had more than eight.
The Spurs’ offense has completely stalled since the first quarter. San Antonio scored 23 points in the opening period but only 19 in the second, shooting 6-for-23 (26.1%) over the final 12 minutes before half-time. Dylan Harper continues to be a problem for New York, contributing 11 points on 4-for-6 shooting off the bench, which ties him with Wembanyama for the team high.
Updated
Knicks 37-40 Spurs, 1.07, 2nd quarter
No Wembanyama or Towns on the floor after the timeout. A crucial two and a half minutes to close this first half ahead. Castle, who’s missed all six of his shots from the floor tonight, makes a pair of free throws to get on the score sheet and open a 40-32 lead. Shortly after a Brunson open look from three rattles in and out, Hart makes a basket while being fouled from behind by Fox ... which is soon upgraded to a flagrant foul upon official’s review. Hart makes the free throw and Bridges scores off the inbounds play, making it a five-point possession for New York.
Knicks 32-38 Spurs, 2.34, 2nd quarter
Moments after New York close within six points on a Bridges three, Towns picks up his third foul to send Castle to the line for two shots. Surely the Knicks big man will head to the bench after this media timeout.
Knicks 28-35 Spurs, 4.06, 2nd quarter
The Knicks have gone on a 10-2 run over the past two and a half minutes that has trimmed the San Antonio lead to seven points. Brunson is leading the charge, quelle surprise, peeling off seven straight for New York with a three-pointer and a pair of mid-range jumpers.
Knicks 12-33 Spurs, 6.41, 2nd quarter
The referee overturns the call on Wembanyama and rules that Towns committed an offensive foul. That means Wembanyama is back down to one foul and Towns has two. Towns stays in the game, unlike in Game 4 when he was benched with a second foul early in the first quarter. A Harper 14ft pull-up jumper makes it 33-18, but Hart answers with a three-pointer to pull the Knicks within 12 points. The Knicks are shooting just 7-for-32 (21.9%) from the floor, but 5-for-12 (41.7%) from beyond the arc.
Knicks 15-31 Spurs, 8.29, 2nd quarter
The Spurs stretch their lead to 15 before Towns finally hits an 18ft turnaround jumper for New York’s first points since 1.00 left in the first. Wembanyama answers with a three from the wing that ignites the crowd, but he’s whistled for his second personal foul moments later. Spurs coach Mitch Johnson is going to challenge this one.
Knicks 13-26 Spurs, 10.34, 2nd quarter
A Julian Champagnie three is sandwiched by two more blocked shots by Wembanyama, already his fourth and fifth of the night. The Spurs are doubling up the Knicks, whose nightmarish shooting night continues. San Antonio’s suffocating defense is dialed in.
End of 1st quarter: Knicks 13-23 Spurs
The Knicks shot 4-for-22 in the first period, finishing with more turnovers (six) than field goals (four). Their 13 points are the fewest they’ve scored in any quarter throughout their postseason run. New York did not score a single point in the paint, going 0-for-8 in the lane during the first quarter while San Antonio outscored them 12-0 inside.
Dylan Harper changed the game off the bench. The rookie entered with 7:49 left and immediately sparked the Spurs, scoring seven points on 3-for-3 shooting, including a three-pointer that pushed the lead to six. He led all scorers except Brunson after one.
Despite shooting 18.2%, New York only trail by 10. That’s probably the most encouraging stat for the Knicks. It’s not easy to go a quarter with four made baskets, six turnovers and zero paint points and remain within striking distance.
Updated
Knicks 10-18 Spurs, 1.40, 1st quarter
Brunson cans an 11ft step-back jumper to stop the bleeding, but the Knicks have 10 points with less than two minutes to go in the opening period. They’ve made 3-of-20 shots from the floor.
Updated
Knicks 8-18 Spurs, 3.06, 1st quarter
Harper makes back-to-back buckets and Johnson follows with a three. Another seven-point burst for the Spurs and they have a double-digit lead in the first quarter for the fifth straight game in these finals.
Knicks 8-11 Spurs, 5.51, 1st quarter
Wembanyama follows a pair of made free throws with a tip dunk, then Harper makes it seven unanswered for the Spurs to give them a 11-5 lead. Anunoby answers with a corner three and New York only trail by three at the first TV timeout despite shooting 2-for-12 (16.7%) from the floor so far.
Knicks 5-4 Spurs, 8.08, 1st quarter
An incredible defensive start for Wembanyama, who has three blocked shots in the first four minutes. He’s also opened the scoring for the Spurs with a transition dunk that ignites the home crowd. Brunson hits a wide-open three and Champagnie answers with a put-back lay-up. Anunoby drains a pair of free throws to give the Knicks an early lead, but both teams have been frigid in the early stages, shooting a combined 3-for-14 from the floor.
Starting lineups
New York Knicks
PG Jalen Brunson – 6ft 2in, 190lb, Villanova
SG Mikal Bridges – 6ft 6in, 209lb, Villanova
SF Josh Hart – 6ft 4in, 215lb, Villanova
PF OG Anunoby – 6ft 7in, 240lb, Indiana
C Karl-Anthony Towns – 7ft 0in, 248lb, Kentucky
San Antonio Spurs
PG De’Aaron Fox – 6ft 3in, 185lb, Kentucky
SG Stephon Castle – 6ft 6in, 215lb, Connecticut
SF Devin Vassell – 6ft 5in, 200lb, Florida State
PF Julian Champagnie – 6ft 8in, 217lb, St John’s
C Victor Wembanyama – 7ft 4in, 230lb, Metropolitans 92 (France)
It’s national anthem time at the Frost Bank Center. Four-time Grammy nominated country singer Mickey Guyton does the honors. Starting lineups to come and we should be under way any minute now.
Updated
One reason the Knicks’ run has resonated so deeply beyond basketball is that it has arrived at a moment when many Americans seem desperate for a distraction. In her Saturday essay for the Guardian, Ankita Rao argues that New York’s improbable march to the brink of a championship has offered a rare escape from the relentless churn of politics and bad news – and a reminder of the communal joy sports can still provide.
Stars – they’re just like us! A healthy chunk of Madison Square Garden’s celebrity row has migrated south with the Knicks one win away from a drought-busting title.
Last week, we took in Game 1 from a place rarely included in the story of New York’s basketball obsession. Before the team moved to the brink of a first title since 1973, the Guardian was granted access to a Knicks watch party inside the Rikers Island jail complex, where thousands of people in custody gathered to experience the NBA finals alongside the rest of the city.
For a few hours, the routines and realities of life behind bars gave way to the same hope, anxiety, superstition and disbelief that have defined this postseason run.
While Knicks fever spilled into bars, restaurants and living rooms and outdoor gatherings across the five boroughs, it also reached one of New York’s least visible and most scrutinized institutions.
The result is a portrait of New York at a singular sporting moment, seen through the eyes of people who are rarely included in the story of the city celebrating itself.
The atmosphere is building in and around San Antonio’s Frost Bank Center, where fans of both teams are showing their colors less than half an hour before tipoff.
The Knicks may be one win from a championship, but they have already conquered another corner of American culture: fashion. From Taylor Swift’s viral “Stevie Knicks” shirt to Timothée Chalamet’s courtside fits, Knicks fandom has become as much a style statement as a sporting allegiance. If you’re wondering how a 53-year title drought turned into the hottest look of the summer, we’ve got two reads for you.
As the series shifts back to San Antonio for Saturday’s Game 5, the mood around the Knicks remains euphoric after Wednesday’s astonishing comeback from 29 points down. But the aftermath of that victory has produced almost as many headlines as the game itself.
New York police said 56 people were taken into custody following post-game unrest around Madison Square Garden, where authorities estimated roughly 10,000 fans gathered after the final buzzer. Ten officers were injured, including one who was struck in the head by a glass bottle. Police said charges ranged from assaulting an officer and disorderly conduct to weapons possession.
The disorder extended beyond the streets surrounding the Garden. Video circulating online showed Spurs star Victor Wembanyama being jeered by fans as he returned to his Manhattan hotel after the game, with an egg tossed in his direction as security escorted him inside. Wembanyama had already spoken out earlier in the week after videos emerged appearing to show Spurs supporters being harassed in the city.
The French star struck a largely defiant tone on Friday as San Antonio attempted to regroup from the largest comeback victory in NBA finals history. “We’re over it. It’s the playoffs,” Wembanyama said of the collapse, adding that the hotel incident “doesn’t bother me”.
No single play can explain how a team squanders a 29-point lead in the NBA finals. But when historians look back on Game 4, they will probably start with De’Aaron Fox racing toward the basket with a one-point lead and less than 15 seconds remaining. Instead of forcing the Knicks to foul, Fox attacked the rim. OG Anunoby blocked his lay-up attempt. Moments later, the Knicks had completed the largest comeback in finals history. Here’s our closer look at the decision that changed everything.
Preamble
For more than half a century, New York has waited for this. Through blackouts and bankruptcies, dynasties and rebuilds, celebrities courtside and coaches on the hot seat, the Knicks have spent 53 years searching for a championship. Tonight, they are one victory from ending the wait.
Standing in their path is a San Antonio Spurs team still trying to process what happened 72 hours ago.
Game 4 looked over long before it was finished. The Spurs led by 29 points midway through the third quarter and appeared to have wrestled control of the NBA finals back from New York. Then everything unraveled. The Knicks stormed back with the largest comeback in finals history, erasing the deficit before OG Anunoby’s putback with 1.2 seconds remaining delivered a stunning 107-106 victory and a commanding 3-1 series lead.
The result left the basketball world asking two questions. How did San Antonio let it happen? And can the Spurs possibly recover?
History is not on their side. Only one team has ever rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win an NBA finals series. Yet this matchup has been far closer than the standings suggest. Through four games, the Knicks have outscored San Antonio by only eight points. Three contests have been decided in the final seconds. The margins separating triumph and disaster have been razor thin.
That is only part of what makes tonight’s potential closeout game so compelling.
The Knicks have arrived in Texas with a chance to end one of the longest championship droughts in American professional sports and begin preparations for a parade through Manhattan. The Spurs return home convinced they have been good enough to win every game in this series and determined to force a trip back to New York.
One side is chasing history. The other is trying to prevent becoming a footnote in it. Game 5 tips off at 7.30pm local time or 8.30 in New York, roughly an hour from now.
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s what Victor Wembanyama had to say about Wednesday’s historic collapse by San Antonio.
Victor Wembanyama says the San Antonio Spurs have shaken off the biggest single-game collapse in NBA finals history and are ready to face the New York Knicks on Saturday.
The Knicks overcame a 29-point deficit to hand the Spurs a crushing 107-106 victory in Game 4 of the series and can win their first title since 1973 with victory in San Antonio.
“There were a thousand ways we could have not lost that game,” Wembanyama told reporters at practice on Friday. “It felt like there was a time to process this, to really dwell on it, but not any more. We’re over it. It’s the playoffs. There’s no time to regret things for too long.”
That, he added, also goes for having had eggs thrown at him and a water bottle tossed at the team bus in New York.
“I didn’t really think much of it,” he said. “Obviously it’s not good at all. But it doesn’t bother me.”
