Victor Wembanyama, Spurs had Kevin Durant fooled until Knicks pulled off one of the craziest Finals runs ever originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The New York Knicks’ 2025-26 NBA Finals win over the San Antonio Spurs remains one of the most memorable championship runs in recent league history. New York overcame the young, homegrown San Antonio squad 4-1 to secure its first NBA title in 53 years, a result that even Kevin Durant found difficult to predict.
The Spurs, led by Victor Wembanyama, entered the Finals with enormous expectations. San Antonio frequently showed flashes of its elite potential, using its length and impressive ball movement to establish commanding leads early in games. However, they struggled to maintain those advantages when the Knicks increased their defensive intensity and physicality in the fourth quarter.
Durant says the Knicks championship was the best as a viewer that he’s ever seen.
“I was on the fence if they were going to win,” Durant said. “And then they got down every game I’m just like, I don’t know. And then it’s like as they started coming back, I didn’t become a believer to be honest until the last game.
“I was just like the Spurs would be up 15 points every game, 29 points, and then they’ll just come back and steal a game.”
That pattern became the defining storyline of the Finals. San Antonio built a 29-point advantage in Game 4 before New York produced an incredible rally to win 107-106, marking the largest comeback in NBA Finals history.
The Knicks erased double-digit deficits in all five matchups against the Spurs, and the defeat could ultimately become an important learning experience for Wembanyama and the young Spurs roster. Learning how to protect those advantages against elite playoff pressure will be crucial as San Antonio continues its rise.
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