The Knicks 29-Point Comeback Will Be Talked About Forever. Here Is What Made It Possible.
The Knicks just authored the largest comeback in NBA Finals history. New York erased a 29 point deficit and beat the Spurs 107-106 to take a 3-1 series lead.
This game looked over. Two minutes and twenty seconds into the third quarter, San Antonio led 81-52. The Spurs were taking everything they wanted on offense. Wembanyama was a problem at the rim. The Knicks looked tired and frustrated. The crowd at Madison Square Garden was already booing.
And then Jalen Brunson decided he was not going to let it happen.
Brunson finished with 36 points. He took over the game in a way that should not have been possible. He attacked switches. He hit threes off the dribble. He drew fouls. He pushed the pace when the Spurs tried to control the tempo. He has played the best three game stretch of his career in this Finals, and Game 4 was the masterpiece.
OG Anunoby played the second best game of his life. He scored 33 points, made the biggest plays defensively, and tipped in the game winner with 1.2 seconds left after Brunson’s three point attempt missed. Anunoby has been the most underrated wing in basketball for two seasons. He is going to get paid like one of the highest priority free agents in the league when his contract comes due, and Knicks fans should remember tonight when that negotiation gets hard.
The Spurs collapse is going to be studied for years. Gregg Popovich gave up his court back home. Mitch Johnson is the head coach now, and his late game decision making was a disaster. The offense stopped moving. The Spurs took bad shots. Wembanyama was double teamed and never adjusted. The team was up 19 with seven minutes to play. They scored eight points the rest of the way.
Wembanyama deserves blame for this loss too. He had 30 points and 14 rebounds, but he also had four turnovers in the final period. He did not get any of his teammates open. He did not hit free throws when the lead was shrinking. Great young stars learn how to close out games. He has not learned that yet, and the Spurs are paying for it.
The advanced numbers tell the story. The Knicks outscored San Antonio 55-25 in the second half. Brunson and Anunoby combined for 41 second half points. The Spurs had four players combine for nine points in the same stretch. That is a collapse on every possible level.
The cultural moment is even bigger. Madison Square Garden has not won a championship since 1973. Taylor Swift, Larry David, Mariska Hargitay, Pete Davidson, and Spike Lee were in the building for Game 4. Social media spent the entire day Friday recreating the comeback in slow motion. The NBA confirmed Game 4 generated over three billion views across platforms. That is a market mover.
Tom Thibodeau finally has the Knicks at the doorstep of a title. He has spent four years building a defensive identity, a tough culture, and a closing lineup that does not lose its nerve. He is the right coach for this team. He has earned the moment.
Game 5 is in San Antonio on Saturday night. The Knicks have a chance to close out the franchise’s first championship in 53 years. The Spurs have a chance to extend the series.
But the headlines have already been written. The Knicks just pulled off the impossible. The rest of this series is gravy.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
