{"id":1984541,"date":"2026-06-11T14:00:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1984541"},"modified":"2026-06-11T14:00:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:00:17","slug":"the-bounce-the-knicks-are-one-win-away-from-a-title-were-not-sure-how","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1984541","title":{"rendered":"The Bounce: The Knicks are one win away from a title. We\u2019re not sure how"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The Bounce Newslette<\/b>r<\/strong>\u00a0\":basketball:\"<\/span>\u00a0| This is The Athletic\u2019s<\/em> daily NBA newsletter.\u00a0Sign up here<\/a>\u00a0to receive The Bounce directly in your inbox.<\/p>\n

The Knicks are one win away from their first NBA championship in 53 years. I saw fans lose their minds up and down Manhattan after the game. I saw Iman Shumpert in the tunnels of MSG, screaming in celebration and exultation that he didn\u2019t need a security escort because he was walking out with J.R. Smith. I saw Patrick Ewing trying to figure out a ride home through the madness. And I saw Wu-Tang Clan smiling from ear to ear because of what they just witnessed. Last night was a one-of-a-kind experience.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Cardiac Knicks<\/h3>\n

Did that comeback really just happen?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It starts with a joke at halftime. The Knicks are getting obliterated by the Spurs, and it looks like we\u2019re headed toward an unprecedented fourth road victory in the first four games of the NBA Finals. But as San Antonio is raining down 3-pointers on the helpless Knicks, and a 27-point deficit at halftime is staring them in the face, everybody you talk to around you makes a funny little comment.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know \u2026 if you can get this down to about 15 heading into the fourth quarter \u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Everybody smirks. You start joking, \u201cImagine if that happened?\u201d and you\u2019re looking up the biggest comeback in finals history. Before last night, that answer was the 24-point comeback by the Boston Celtics in Game 4 of the 2008 finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Now the answer is the Knicks\u2019 29-point comeback in Game 4 of the 2026 finals. Because New York did the impossible and turned those little jokes into reality.<\/p>\n

I still don\u2019t fully understand what I just witnessed. <\/strong>The first half was an abomination for anybody not in the Spurs\u2019 universe. We wanted a great game, and instead we had a mockery \u2014 San Antonio led 76-49 after two quarters. Then Wu-Tang Clan performed at halftime, and everything changed. Was it because of their medley of songs? Was it Taylor Swift deciding to endure the second half in her \u201cStevie Knicks\u201d T-shirt? Was it the sage that fans lit outside Madison Square Garden between Games 3 and 4 finally cleansing the deep fibers of the world\u2019s most famous arena?<\/p>\n

\n

You may think all of this is ridiculous to ponder. It is! I\u2019m still wrapping my head around being in the building for the biggest comeback in finals history<\/a>. The Knicks cut the lead to 15 heading into the fourth quarter as the Spurs seemed to just stop taking this seriously. They pushed the lead back to 20 in the fourth, and it was supposed to be safe. It wasn\u2019t. OG Anunoby and Jose Alvarado both had eight points in the final quarter. Jalen Brunson had nine. And the Spurs simply crumbled.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

We kept waiting for the Spurs\u2019 youth to come into play during this playoff run. Their youth has hurt them in three of the four finals games \u2013 the worst time for it to rear its juvenile head.<\/strong> When Brunson missed the go-ahead 3-pointer with a couple of seconds left, the comeback looked like it would be thwarted by time and by default.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

{“endpoint”:”https:\/\/api-prd-nyt.theathletic.com\/graphql”}<\/p>\n

Instead, Anunoby came skying into the paint and tapped in the go-ahead basket<\/a> with 1.2 seconds left.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

It was fate. The Knicks got one more stop, and the Spurs got yet another lesson in experience versus youth. Anunoby finished with 33 points while shooting 10-of-15 from the field and 7-of-9 from deep. Brunson had 36 points on 12-of-25 from the field.<\/p>\n

The Spurs shot 59.6 percent from the field and 14-of-26 from deep in the first half. Their second-half plummet? They went 8-of-39 from the field (20.5 percent) and 3-of-17 from deep. Anunoby had one fewer make (seven) in the second half than the entire Spurs team.<\/strong> Victor Wembanyama went 3-of-14 in the second half to finish with 24 points on 25 shots, including 13 rebounds, three blocks and one more flagrant foul point that puts him on the brink of suspension.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m writing this about three hours after the game, and my ears are still ringing. For all the corporate\/Wall Street nature and weirdness of the Game 3 crowd, the Game 4 attendance delivered<\/a>. It took a while for the fans to get into this game, because it took a while for the Knicks to get into this game. But hearing them explode as the comeback mounted and Anunoby\u2019s tipped shot went in was unreal.<\/p>\n

I still hear them chanting, \u201cGo, Knicks!\u201d I still hear them singing \u201cNew York, New York\u201d in celebration<\/a>. This is one of those moments I\u2019m truly honored by how cool this job is.<\/p>\n

Stat of the game: <\/strong>Wu-Tang finished plus-28 on the night.<\/p>\n

Playoff Panic Meter:<\/strong> \ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\udea8 for San Antonio.<\/p>\n

When is Game 5?<\/strong> Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

The last 24<\/h3>\n

\u26bd Celebrations. <\/strong>The World Cup kicks off today. And the USMNT couldn\u2019t believe the Knicks\u2019 win<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\ud83e\udd26 No words. <\/strong>The Spurs will keep getting asked how they lost that one. I\u2019m not sure they know<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc40 Since Jordan. <\/strong>Game 3 of the NBA Finals was watched by 23.8 million people. The most since 1998<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\ud83c\udfc0 Congrats? <\/strong>The biggest winner of Game 4? It was Knicks owner James Dolan, Ian O\u2019Connor writes<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc4b Hello! <\/strong>AJ Dybantsa is probably the top prospect in the draft. He was at Game 4 and will visit with the Wizards this week<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\ud83d\udd0a \u201cNBA Daily.\u201d <\/strong>Watch and listen to a breakdown of last night\u2019s game<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Stream the NBA on Fubo (<\/em>try it for free!<\/a>)<\/em>\u00a0and catch out-of-market games on\u00a0<\/em>League Pass<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Massive mistake<\/h3>\n

Fox was supposed to be the calming presence<\/strong><\/p>\n

De\u2019Aaron Fox is a former Clutch Player of the Year. He\u2019s one of the reasons the Sacramento Kings were able to end their NBA record playoff drought a few seasons ago. And the Spurs brought him to San Antonio to pair with Wemby and help guide a very young team during the tough moments.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why it\u2019s so baffling that Fox committed maybe the most egregious mistake<\/a> in the Spurs\u2019 29-point collapse<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

These are the three biggest comebacks in finals history:<\/p>\n