SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Each of the opening four contests between New York and San Antonio in this year’s NBA Finals has featured dramatic closing moments, with every game’s winner remaining uncertain until under a minute remained on the clock.
In the series opener, New York held a four-point advantage with 58 seconds left. The second game saw the Knicks prevail by a single point when Victor Wembanyama’s potential game-winner fell short. San Antonio claimed Game 3 by four points. The fourth contest again went to New York by one point following OG Anunoby’s miraculous tip-in basket.
No championship series has featured such tight finishes — with margins of four points or fewer in each game’s final minute through the first four matchups — since 1973. New York captured that series title. The Knicks have not claimed a championship since that time.
Saturday presents an opportunity to end that drought. With New York holding a 3-1 series advantage, they can eliminate San Antonio at home when Game 5 tips off.
“You have to be present,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said Friday. “You can’t think about the outcome. It’s about the process, the next play, the next play, the next play.”
This series might easily be deadlocked at two games apiece, considering San Antonio surrendered a 29-point advantage in Game 4 during what became the most significant meltdown in NBA Finals history.
San Antonio commanded an 81-52 lead during the third quarter Wednesday evening before being outscored 55-25 over the remaining time, connecting on just six of their final 35 field goal attempts and falling on OG Anunoby’s tip-in with 1.2 seconds left. Taylor Swift joined many others in extended celebrations after the buzzer sounded, leaving the Spurs searching for ways to recover from devastating disappointment.
“There’s conviction in strength and confidence,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “That’s what it is. There’s no trick. There’s no avoiding what’s happened. There’s no avoiding all four games have been winnable games. There’s no avoiding we’re down 3-1. There’s not avoiding ways that we could be better. There’s nobody that’s going to be harder on ourselves and accountable to ourselves than the people in the locker room and each other.”
Prior to Game 4, teams holding leads of 29 points or greater were:
— 249-0 this season.
— 288-2 over the last 30 postseasons.
— 4,088-13 over the last 30 seasons, counting regular season and playoff games.
These statistics indicate San Antonio — who have established double-digit leads in every game — possessed approximately a 99.7% probability of winning Game 4, evening the series and returning home with complete momentum. Instead, they face elimination.
“We still have that belief that we have a chance to win,” said Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox, who has heard tons of criticism since Wednesday for his decision to try a layup instead of running down the clock when he had the ball and San Antonio leading by one in the final moments. “But we’re taking this one game at a time. We’re not looking at it as we need to win three games. We need to win tomorrow and then we give ourselves a chance to play another game.”
The task appears daunting. When presented with elimination opportunities this season, New York has shown no mercy.
The Knicks stand 3-0 in potential series-clinching games during these playoffs, capturing those contests by an overwhelming average margin of 39.3 points. New York built a 61-point lead before defeating Atlanta 140-89 to advance past Round 1, established a 44-point cushion before beating Philadelphia 144-114 in Round 2, then created a 45-point margin before eliminating Cleveland 130-93 in the Eastern Conference finals.
Those dominant performances all occurred away from home. Thousands of Knicks supporters are anticipated in San Antonio Saturday evening, eager to witness New York conclude its lengthy championship wait.
“One possession at a time, one play at a time, one quarter at a time,” Knicks guard Jalen Brunson said. “You’re thinking about the now, how you can be better the next possession, how can you turn the page, positive or negative. Regardless of what’s going on, our mindset and approach has to stay the same. I think we’ve done a very good job of that. It’s something that has grown over the season. It’s really important, especially obviously now.”
