NBA Basketball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games 2026-06-06 09:40:01
Wembanyama mistake hands Knicks control of NBA Finals
The New York Knicks survived a late rally by the San Antonio Spurs to win 105-104 and take a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals as they seek a first championship in 53 years.
With nine and a half seconds remaining on the clock, Jalen Brunson stole possession after Spurs' Victor Wembanyama passed the ball into team-mate Stephon Castle's back.
Wembanyama then fouled Benson, who converted the free-throw to give the Knicks the decisive point.
There was still time for Wembanyama to attempt to tie the game for the Spurs, but he missed from 20 feet on the buzzer to hand the Knicks their 13th successive play-off victory.
Wembanyama has been at the centre of much of the drama in the NBA Finals so far - in game one, he was approached by a spectator who ran on to the court, filming himself on his phone.
Appearing in the Finals for the first time since 1999, the Knicks are the third team to win the first two games of a Finals away from home.
The Chicago Bulls did it in 1993, and the Houston Rockets in 1995. Each side went on to win the championship.
After a quiet first-half performance, Wembanyama led a Spurs' comeback, scoring 22 second-half points as they caught up with 14-in-a-row in the final quarter.
In the final seconds, the scores were level as the Frenchman passed the ball into Castle's back, which gave Brunson a chance to grab the winning basket.
In a post-match news conference, Wembanyama conceded that he was not at his best, having starred on the Spurs' route to the Finals.
"We need to never get too high and never get too low," said the 22-year-old, appearing in the Finals for the first time. "Personally, I think I could have been better in recovering from the high of the conference finals.
"I threw that [misplaced pass] away. I messed up.
"Am I going to regret it? Yes, of course. Am I going to use that to fuel me and to fuel us next game? Absolutely."
Meanwhile, match-winner Brunson credited the team environment for his sparkling form after his final-quarter scoring also won game one for the Knicks.
"I think most importantly, knowing we're on the road, and knowing my team-mates have my back, I think that's the biggest thing in an environment like this," Brunson said.
"The trust they have in me and the trust I have in them, it's got us to this point."
The best-of-seven series continues on Monday, when the Knicks host the Spurs at Madison Square Gardens in New York City.
US president Donald Trump, who was born in New York City, plans to attend as the Knicks hunt their first championship since 1973.
Mikal Bridges steps up, Mitchell Robinson locks down Victor Wembanyama as NBA Finals momentum swings Knicks' way
SAN ANTONIO -- A few notes from the Knicks’ Game 2 win over the Spurs:
The Knicks still owe the Nets four first-round picks as part of the Mikal Bridges trade. They’ll send them over with a smile if Bridges continues to perform like he did on Friday night. The wing had 20 points on 13 shots while adding six rebounds and six assists to help the Knicks take a commanding 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals.
Bridges’ points came at some opportune moment as Knicks captain Jalen Brunson struggled with his shot. In the second and third quarters, Bridges hit all eight of his attempts for 20 points. Brunson was 2-for-8 with two turnovers in the same stretch.
All in all, Bridges is averaging more than 16 points per game on roughly 60 percent shooting during the Knicks’ 13-game winning streak. For the second straight season, Bridges has had big moments in the playoffs following a so-so regular season.
What is it that makes Bridges a playoff riser?
“Just that desperation,” Bridges said. “You know, that desperation of trying to be the last team standing and trying to do whatever it takes to help my team win. There's nothing after June. You don't play again until October. So just try to give it all that I got and do whatever it takes for this team.”
Thanks in part to Bridges, the Knicks are two wins away from their first NBA championship in 53 years.
ROBINSON ROLLS
Mitchell Robinson defended Victor Wembanyama late in Game 2 -- and it worked out well. Mike Brown used Robinson on Wembanyama in the closing moments and Robinson delivered, helping to force Wembanyama into two missed shots.
“Wemby is, I said it before, iconic,” Brown said. “There is nobody like from. He can score from all three levels. He wants the ball. Two big possessions at the end of the game we put Mitch on him. What I'm proud about more than anything else, Mitch defended him the right way.
“Wemby is iconic. If he makes a shot, he makes a shot. You're not blocking a shot. You make him work, you lead with your chest. You show your hands and you embrace those details while trying to guard him and then box out. It started with Mitch and it ended with the other four guys boxing out.
“So just a heck of a job by Mitch guarding the most iconic player in the world on two possessions to possibly win the game. Phenomenal.”
With two more wins, Brown will draw accurate comparisons to Joe Torre in 1996. A low-key manager takes over for an intense coach and gets results in Year 1.
Karl-Anthony Towns is outplaying Victor Wembanyama, Knicks are two wins from title because of it
SAN ANTONIO — If the vote took place after two games, Karl-Anthony Towns would be the NBA Finals MVP.
It's not just me saying that.
"The MVP of the Finals is gonna be Karl-Anthony Towns. That man earned his flowers," Charles Barkley said on Inside the NBA Friday night.
That nod to Towns is with all due respect to Jalen Brunson, who has lived up to the Captain Clutch nickname in two straight games. It's with all due respect to Mikal Bridges, who has played his best basketball in the Finals.
Without Towns playing at this level, New York is down 0-2 in this series.
KAT DIME
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2026
What a pass from under the basket in Game 2! pic.twitter.com/b5epEnwS4J
Towns scored a team-high 21 points with 13 rebounds on Friday night, but his counting stats don't do his impact in this series justice. His physical defense on Wembanyama has kept the Spurs star off balance and in relative check for most of the first two games. On the other end of the court, Towns is a matchup nightmare because he can bully his way to the rim for a bucket or knock down a jumper. His threat as a 3-point shooter who must be accounted for has pulled Wemby out of the paint — opening the path for Knicks drives and offensive rebounds in a way the Thunder or no other team has been able to against the Spurs.
"He's been great. I think he's been pretty phenomenal on both sides of the ball," Jalen Brunson said of Towns' effort. "The things he's been able to do throughout this entire playoffs but obviously here now, he's been great..."
Then Brunson threw out the line that defines these Knicks this postseason:
"But we need more."
"I think he's made some shots and he's a really good player..." Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "He played two good games. We have to make it tougher on him. We've had some coverage breakdowns."
Towns’ Journey wasn’t smooth
The Timberwolves traded Towns to New York in a deal that was far more about Minnesota's salary cap outlook than production on the court. However, there also were persistent questions around the Timberwolves about whether Towns was enough alongside Anthony Edwards to get the team over the hump.
It's because of those years that Towns relates to what the Spurs are going through in these Finals, but the hard lessons he learned then are paying off now.
"I have been on the other side where you're a young team and you're trying to do a lot to win the game, and I think that for us, we keep leaning on experience and we keep leaning on the word 'execution,'" Towns said.
Towns' play in New York has not been consistent over the past two years — there are times it has felt he is not doing enough, and there are times when it feels like he is trying to do too much. Rarely has it felt like a natural fit.
Mike Brown seemed like a coach who could change that — his style of play should have been a hand-in-glove fit with Towns. It was not. Or at least not instantly. It took most of the season, and even into the playoffs, for Towns and Brown to find a balance in the offense that worked for both.
"I came in with a great plan. Maybe the plan doesn't work. Who adjusts, him or me? Me. I adjust," Brown said of how the season went with Towns. "The adjustment's not enough. Every once in a while we're not on the same page. We talk about it. We talk about it. I adjust again. A little bit better. He's feeling good. We talk about it. We talk -- maybe we take a couple of steps backwards because what I did, he doesn't like, which is fine....
"And we finally got to a point where he was comfortable, I was comfortable, Jalen (Brunson) was comfortable, OG (Anunoby) was comfortable, Mikal (Bridges) was comfortable, and to me that's what the regular season is about. The regular season is about finding your way so you can prepare for this time of the year."
Towns looks prepared.
He looks like a Finals MVP. And, in what matters most to Towns himself, he looks like an NBA champion.
Spurs’ rally ends in heartbreak as Knicks escape with Game 2 win
For five minutes on Friday night, it looked like the San Antonio Spurs were on their way to completing one of the greatest comebacks in the history of the NBA Finals. Instead, they are facing a harash reality: being in an 0-2 series deficit.
Despite rallying from a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter and taking the lead in the final minutes, the Spurs suffered a heartbreaking 105-104 loss to the New York Knicks in Game 2 of the NBA Finals at the Frost Bank Center, putting San Antonio in an 0-2 hole as the series shifts to Madison Square Garden.
“We weren’t playing good enough,” Spurs Head Coach Mitch Johnson said. “We weren’t consistent enough in the phases of the game. It felt like we chased the game a little bit and they [Knicks] made some tough shots at the end of the shot clock. I thought that affected our approach at times and took away from trying to play our brand of basketball.”
After a strong first quarter, the Spurs were outscored 31-18 in the second quarter thanks to the play of Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges. Victor Wembanyama, who said he needed to be better after Game 1, had just seven points on four shot attempts in the first half.
Wembanyama turned things around in the second half as he finished the game with 29 points, nine rebounds and four blocks while being a key cog in San Antonio’s comeback effort on both ends of the floor. De’Aaron Fox bounced back from a poor outing in Game 1 to score 20 points as the Spurs chipped away at New York’s lead.
With the Spurs trailing 97-83 with 6:03 remaining, San Antonio’s defense tightened, shots started to fall, the crowd came alive, and the Spurs began getting stops that turned into transition points. Wembanyama gave the Spurs the lead when he was fouled on an attempt, hitting the free throw to put his team up one. When it appeared momentum had shifted, New York responded.
“I threw that one away. I messed up. We needed to win that game. This game was ours,” Wembanyama said of his turnover at the end of the game. “But at this point, it’s done. Am I going to regret it? Yes, of course. Am I going to use that to fuel me and to fuel us next game? Absolutely.”
Jalen Brunson delivered in the game’s biggest moments, which is why he’s earned the nickname “Captain Clutch”. Wembanyama passed the ball, but it went off the back of Stephon Castle. Wemby fouled Brunson who dived to the court for the ball, sending him to the free throw line. Brunson knocked down the go-ahead free throw with 9.5 seconds left, giving New York the 105-104 lead.
“We showed tremendous desperation, urgency, and competitive response,” Johnson said of the Spurs’ fourth quarter rally. “Hopefully we can try to bottle that up so we don’t have to be down to play at that same level.”
The Spurs still had one final chance. Wembanyama’s shot attempt hit iron as time expired, sending the thousands of Knicks fans who made the trip into a frenzy. Anthony-Towns led the way for the Knicks with 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Bridges added 20 points, six rebounds and six assists. Brunson chipped in 20 points despite a difficult shooting night, going 7-for-25 from the floor.
“I’m still very blurry, and that’s the whole problem,” Wembanyama said of the final moments down the stretch. “I need to have more poise, more control over the game.”
The loss stings for San Antonio because they were so close. After struggling offensively for long stretches and having the Knicks control much of the game, the Spurs nearly tied the series up at one game apiece and sent their fans honking into the night.
The comeback will be remembered, but so will the heartbreaking ending. Now, the Spurs are in unfamiliar territory: needing to win on the road at Madison Square Garden to get back into the series.
While things seem daunting, the Finals are far from over. But for one night in June in San Antonio, a rally became a heartbreaking reminder of how thin the margin for error can be on basketball’s biggest stage.
Game Notes
- Through two games, Jalen Brunson is 19-for-56 from the field against the Spurs. We can’t chalk it up to Brunson having a bad shooting night. This is more credit for the swarming defense that the Spurs have played on him.
- Keldon Johnson played 15 minutes and was 1-of-4 from the floor. Not exactly the numbers the Spurs need from their sixth man of the year.
- Julian didn’t have the best night, but his rebounding made up for the poor shooting night.
- The series is not over, but it has gotten harder with two games in New York and down 0-2.
- If the Spurs can play like they did over the final six minutes in Game 2 to start Game 3, they will get themselves back in the series.
Jalen Brunson explains why Knicks 'can't be comfortable' returning to MSG with 2-0 NBA Finals lead
The Knicks take a 2-0 NBA Finals lead back to New York after Friday's 105-104 Game 2 win at the Spurs, swiping both of the series' first two matchups in San Antonio and setting the stage for a chaotic MSG as Mike Brown's team could close out the championship chase on its home court.
Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns put the Knicks' two-game advantage into perspective following New York's near collapse in which it trailed 104-102 with 57 seconds left and was a Victor Wembanyama shot away from a 1-1 tie.
"Every single day, we try to chip away, trying to be the best team we can be," said Brunson, who scored the Knicks' final five points, tying and ultimately taking the one-point lead along the way. "I think our mindset was 0-0, not being up 1-0. Even with what the series is now, next game, mindset has to be 0-0 again. It's just how it has to be. You can't be comfortable, you can't be satisfied with anything. You've just got to continue to push forward."
New York overcame Brunson's 20 points on 7-of-25 shooting with Towns' 21-point, 13-rebound double-double and play against Wembanyama -- the game-high scorer with 29 points -- to fend off the Spurs, who trailed 97-83 with six minutes left after OG Anunoby's dunk assisted by Towns.
"I have been on the other side where you're a young team and you're trying to do a lot to win the game," Towns said. "I think that, for us, we keep leaning on experience and we keep leaning on the word 'execution' and I think we did a good job when we needed to, executing, but we didn't do as well as we wanted to. So, when we get back to New York, we'll get back to work, we'll get back to the gym and try to correct the mistakes we made tonight."
Monday's 8:30 p.m. Game 3 at The Garden awaits with the Knicks expecting the Spurs' best.
"Knowing them, there's definitely another level," Brunson said. "We've got to be prepared and ready to match it, be ready to play for 48 minutes and, no matter what goes on throughout a game, just having each other's back, regardless of what's going on -- who's on a run, who's not, who's up, who's down. Just making sure that we're playing together for 48 minutes is really important."
What The No. 2 Pick Means For Utah’s Long-Term Cap Sheet
The NBA can be pretty simple. There’s one ball and five players. If you have one of the best players in the league handling the ball the majority of the time, your team is going to win a lot of games. The issue that teams run into is the salaries. Teams rise and fall with the balance of contracts that fit into a team’s timelines and windows.
How many teams have fizzled because a team had no cap room to improve? That’s every team, actually. As teams fill their rosters, typically in the draft, those players eventually run out their contracts and will demand the most possible. The best teams in the league will make sure they’re constantly replenishing their team with young players from the draft. If teams run out of draft picks, it’s inevitable that the cap or age catches up to them. The best example of this came from the Jazz four seasons ago. Utah had gone all in on a Mike Conley trade as they tried to maximize on their two-man core of Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. With the picks gone from the Mike Conley trade, and with some bad drafting (looking at you, Udoka Azubuike), the Jazz maxed out their potential and had no way to improve because they were capped out.
Beyond the potential of being the best prospect in Jazz history, the #2 pick is valuable for what it does for the Jazz cap as well. Having a player like AJ Dybantsa or Darryn Peterson is incredibly valuable. But having them on your team, secured on a rookie contract, means the Jazz can also maximize every other position.
Next season, Utah will be giving $49M to Jaren Jackson Jr., $46M to Lauri Markkanen, and they’ll likely be giving somewhere between $25M and $30M to Walker Kessler, and Keyonte George is going to get paid soon too. That’s a situation that doesn’t leave anything for signing players in free agency, outside of exceptions like the mid-level exception.
But that’s what makes the #2 pick even more valuable. That core of George, Kessler, Markkanen, and Jackson, with Ace Bailey on a rookie contract, is great. Now? The Jazz will add another rookie contract in either Dybantsa or Peterson. And what if Dybantsa or Peterson are as good as people hope? Having a tier-1 prospect making $13M over the next four years is incredible. Down the road, Utah will have to make decisions on their contracts, but for now? They’re sitting pretty and can keep this current roster together as long as they’re willing to pay the tax.
With the draft just weeks away, Utah has to be excited about the chance to add not only a generational prospect, but one that will also fit into a rapidly rising cap situation for the Jazz. Currently, FanDuel has the odds of AJ Dybantsa at -450 so it seems likely that Darryn Peterson is likely going to be on the Jazz.
New York Knicks vs. San Antonio Spurs timeline: How New York won NBA Finals Game 2
The New York Knicks managed to thwart the San Antonio Spurs’ fourth-quarter rally, taking a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals on Friday, June 5.
The game saw both teams hold leads as large as 12 points. The Knicks trailed the Spurs 34-25 at the end of the first quarter and did not see their first lead of the game until the final minutes of the second quarter.
New York went back to the locker room at halftime with a 56-52 lead after outscoring San Antonio 31-18 in the second quarter and carried its momentum into the third quarter.
The Knicks led the Spurs 84-75 after three quarters ... before the game’s final quarter helped the contest live up to the standard set for the series.
9:35 left: Tension began to rise when De’Aaron Fox of the Spurs and Jalen Brunson of the Knicks had a stare down. Knicks assistant coach Rick Brunson, Jalen Brunson's father, was visibly unhappy with the situation and was briefly held back by Knicks head coach Mike Brown on the bench.
PLAYOFF BASKETBALL.
— ESPN (@espn) June 6, 2026
FOX AND BRUNSON STAREDOWN 🍿 #NBAFinalspic.twitter.com/zDUkVzcmuw
9:11 left: The Spurs began to pick up the pace in the final frame, cutting the Knicks' lead down to five after Dylan Harper made a shot under the basket. New York led San Antonio 87-82.
2:59 left: San Antonio managed to gain some momentum late in the quarter after Dylan Harper scored under the basket to tie the game with the Knicks at 97. San Antonio went on a 14-0 scoring run to even the score.
THE FINAL 77 SECONDS OF GAME 2 WAS MADNESS 🤯
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2026
WATCH THE FULL SEQUENCE UNCUT 🎥 pic.twitter.com/zgcPxnE0V4
57.3 seconds left: Victor Wembanyama had previously made a layup off an assist from Dylan Harper to give the Spurs a 103-102 lead with 57.3 seconds left in the quarter. Karl-Anthony Towns was called for his fifth foul on the play, sending Wembanyama to the line before a successful free-throw attempt.
The final minute of Game 2 was wild 😯 pic.twitter.com/pjZo4MdssY
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 6, 2026
13.6 left: With the game tied at 104, Wembanyama grabbed the defensive rebound after Jalen Brunson missed a jump shot. The Defensive Player of the Year attempted to pass the ball toward point guard Stephon Castle, who wasn't looking. Brunson then swooped in and stole the ball before colliding with Wembanyama, who was called for a foul.
7.5 left: Brunson made just one of his two free-throw attempts to give the Knicks a 105-104 lead.
0.0 left: Wembanyama had a clean look for a potential game-winner but missed the shot on the final possession as time expired. The Knicks won 105-104 and will return to New York with a 2-0 lead and a chance to sweep the series and capture their first title since 1973.
Victor Wembanyama walking off the floor after going down 2-0 to the Knicks in the NBA Finals. pic.twitter.com/iBlYqZ1VQP
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 6, 2026
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Knicks vs Spurs timeline: How New York won NBA Finals Game 2
Knicks' composure, 'connectivity' instilled by Mike Brown crucial to Game 2 survival of Spurs
If you asked a Knicks fan to describe the ideal version of how they want to see their team play, they would end up describing this season’s version of the Knicks: a grind-it-out collection of men who are determined to fight it out for 48 minutes and outlast the opposition.
If you asked coach Mike Brown that question, coming off a 105-104 Game 2 win to make it 13 consecutive playoff victories and a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals, he’d likely say the same.
“We could have folded a few times,” Brown said in describing his side’s resilience in withstanding seeing a 14-point fourth-quarter lead evaporate in a matter of moments before a single free throw proved the difference as the Knicks held Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs scoreless in their final three possessions to seal the win.
“But our guys just kept fighting. They kept fighting. And the one thing I told them that you work on connectivity throughout the course of the year for moments like these.
“And no matter what run they went on, no matter what time of the game, our guys just kept uplifting one another, not just the guys on the floor but the guys on the bench. They just kept uplifting one another throughout the course of San Antonio's runs.”
With 6:04 to play in the game, OG Anunoby's two-handed slam past Wembanyama put the Knicks up 97-83. The Knicks wouldn't score for the next three and a half minutes before Anunoby put in three at the free throw line to break a tie.
The message from Brown during the Spurs’ run: “Stay composed.”
Jalen Brunson, who was 2-for-10 from the field in the second half, scored the Knicks' final five points, including hitting a layup to put them ahead three on a nice in-bound play and a fadeaway to level the score with 39 seconds remaining.
"We do a good job of staying composed in those situations," Brunson said. "It's a credit to the character that this team has, not being able to fold in a situation like that is key to winning games like this.
"At this stage of the season, things aren't gonna be pretty. It's gonna be ugly. It's gonna be grind it out. It's as simple as that. No matter what the situation is, we're gonna have each other's back."
Brown said that connectivity, established during the 53-win regular season and ironed out over three playoff series wins, “paid huge dividends for our group” on Friday night in San Antonio.
"It's an amazing feeling, as a coach, to know how mentally tough your team is -- no matter what the situation is in front of 'em," Brown said. "To see them continue to fight and fight and fight and fight -- no matter what the score is, no matter how much time is on the clock -- it's just a fantastic feeling.
"I'm telling you, man, the NBA is tough. You don't experience what I'm experiencing with this group a ton, and it is a fricking joy to be around."
How little-known assistant coach saved Knicks from crushing collapse: ‘Master at this’
SAN ANTONIO — Jalen Brunson scored the game-winning point. Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns had big games. The Knicks bench was terrific again.
But the MVP of the Knicks’ franchise-record 13th straight playoff victory may have been an assistant coach.
Jordan Brink, the team’s director of video services and player development, being able to convince coach Mike Brown to challenge a call late in the fourth quarter was pivotal in the Knicks’ dramatic 105-104 win over the Spurs at Frost Bank Center. They lead the NBA Finals 2-0 after becoming the third road team to win the first two games of the finals.
The Knicks had blown a 14-point lead. Momentum had flipped. The official had ruled that the ball had gone out of bounds off OG Anunoby while he attempted a 3-pointer. But Brink felt there was a foul on the play with 2:37 left.
After a review, the call was reversed. Anunoby was headed to the free-throw line for three attempts.
“Jordan, he’s been a master at this,” Brown said of the assistant coach, who played at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich.
Later, on Brink, Brown added: “He’s been doing this now two years in a row. I rely totally on him. Every once in a while I lose my mind, get emotional, and try to stick it to the refs, even though I like all of them. But that never works. So I try like heck to follow Jordan’s lead, and it was 100 percent his call.”
Just as importantly, Anunoby stepped to the line and made all three free throws. He wasn’t surprised the call was changed.
“It was a foul, so I was surprised they didn’t call it initially,” said Anunoby, who had 17 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in 36 quality minutes. “Jordan Brink did a great job of letting the coaches know. … I think it was big, especially because it was three extra points.”
It helped stop the Spurs’ momentum. Without that successful challenge, the Finals may be headed back to New York tied at 1-1.
Victor Wembanyama on late costly turnover Knicks' Game 2 win over Spurs: 'I threw that one away'
Victor Wembanyama said the focus has already shifted to Game 3 of the NBA Finals, but the final three possessions of Game 2's one-point loss to the Knicks will long linger in the Spurs star's mind as San Antonio missed an opportunity to complete a 14-point fourth-quarter comeback and New York grabbed a 2-0 series lead.
Twice, he missed pull-up jumpers over Mitchell Robinson, the second just before the buzzer to seal a 105-104 Knicks win, sandwiched around a costly turnover as he threw the ball off teammate Stephon Castle's back in the backcourt and set up Jalen Brunson’s game-deciding free throw.
“I’m still very blurry, and that’s the whole problem,” Wembanyama said about the game’s final moments. “I need to have more poise, more control over the game.”
Wembanyama called the turnover “the most frustrating thing.”
“To throw it away after putting in all this work,” he said, adding the urgency of the moment, getting the rebound and pushing the ball up the court led to the mistake. “The body reacts quicker than the mind.”
Coming off the floor, he said he had “lots of emotions of every type,” before correcting himself, “not of every type, only the negative type.”
“I threw that one away, I messed up,” he said. “We didn’t play great as a team. We needed to win that game. This game was ours. But at this point it’s done.
“Am I gonna regret it? Yes, of course. Am I gonna use that to fuel me and to fuel us next game? Absolutely.”
On the final possession, Wembanyama got a good look off a pick-and-pop for a 20-foot jumper to steal the game, but the jumper with two seconds left hit back iron.
“I liked the shot, but I feel like in this moment you need to shoot to score,” he said. “And in moments like this, results matter more than process. We just need to score, I need to score.”
The Spurs had done the hard part. After the Knicks' lead hit 97-83 with 6:04 to play, San Antonio would score 12 straight in the next 129 seconds, a run interrupted but not halted by two Mike Brown timeouts.
After Brunson missed a pair of shots, the latter a wide-open three-pointer, pushing the Knicks’ cold streak to six straight off the mark, the game was tied with three minutes remaining as Dillon Harper laid it in at the other end with 3:00 to play. The Spurs would then score on four of their next five possessions and held a two-point lead with under a minute remaining.
“I think we need to put ourselves in better conditions,” Wembanyama said. “We’re digging ourselves a hole, that’s been a theme so far.”
The hole came from the Knicks dominating the middle quarters, outscoring their hosts 59-41.
Wembanyama was a bit of a non-factor in the first half, attempting just four shots in his first 18 minutes.
“I have to make sure that there are environments that the ball finds him,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said of the low shot total. “He’s gotta make sure that he can’t rely on that to get shots, as well. And I think there are times, when he was open on rolls around the paint and his teammates gotta get him the ball.
“... But, yeah, four shots in a half, on this stage, is not acceptable.”
The Spurs’ star was an even plus-minus and had just seven points, five rebounds, two blocks, one assist, one steal, and two turnovers. (He turned it around, scoring 22 points in 22 second-half minutes on 9-for-17 shooting.)
Karl-AnthonyTowns took full advantage, scoring 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting (3-for-5 from deep) with seven rebounds, three assists, a steal, a block, and was a plus-13 in 18 first-half minutes.
Wembanyama called Towns a “very different” big man from the ones the Spurs faced in earlier rounds.
“It’s bringing us into difficult areas because they’re good players and he’s a good player,” Wembanyama said of Towns. “We just need to figure it out, we need to keep working at it... We can do a little bit better; we can do better defensively.”
Knicks weather Spurs' late push in Game 2 win, bring 2‑0 NBA Finals lead back to 'hectic' MSG
The Knicks withstood the Spurs' nine-point advantage in the first and fourth quarters, the latter of which included a 21-5 run over five minutes and a two-point San Antonio lead with 57 seconds left, before emerging from Friday's 105-104 NBA Finals Game 2 win.
"It's an amazing feeling, as a coach, to know how mentally tough your team is -- no matter what the situation is in front of 'em," Mike Brown said. "To see them continue to fight and fight and fight and fight -- no matter what the score is, no matter how much time is on the clock -- it's just a fantastic feeling. I'm telling you, man, the NBA is tough. You don't experience what I'm experiencing with this group a ton, and it is a fricking joy to be around."
New York needed Jalen Brunson's game-tying bucket at the fourth quarter's 39-second point and 1-of-2 mark from the free-throw line 20 seconds later before surviving on Victor Wembanyama's go-ahead attempt, which missed with two seconds left and secured the Knicks' 2-0 series lead.
"It's 0-0 at this point, as far as we're concerned," Josh Hart said. "Being up 2-0 means, really, nothing. This team's going to come out on, what, Monday with an unbelievable amount of energy and desperation and we've got to be better."
Regardless of New York's outlook, the MSG environment figures to be a raucous one with the Knicks two wins away from the franchise's first NBA championship since 1973.
"Hectic," Miles McBride said as New York's focus shifts to Monday's 8:30 p.m. Game 3 at The Garden. "I'm sure it's going crazy right now. We heard New York here, down in San Antonio, so ... I don't even know what I'm expecting, honestly. It's going to be great. I'm excited."
Watch Wemby's would-be game-winner rim out as Knicks survive Spurs rally in NBA Finals Game 2
The New York Post called it an "all-time mistake," but Victor Wembanyama had a chance to atone for the errant pass that ultimately led to the New York Knicks' final score in their 105-104 NBA Finals Game 2 victory against the Spurs on June 5 in San Antonio.
With the ball in his hands and the final buzzer nearing, Wembanyama unfurled his 7-foot-4 frame for a clean look at a long two-pointer at the right elbow that would have tied these Finals at 1-1. But the shot was just long, and bounced off the rim as the Knicks celebrated their 13th consecutive victory in the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
"A great player got a great shot. It just didn't go in," New York forward Karl-Anthony Towns said postgame on ABC's broadcast.
KNICKS GET THE HUGE DEFENSIVE STOP TO WIN GAME 2 🚨
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2026
THEY'VE WON 13 STRAIGHT AND LEAD THE NBA FINALS, 2-0 🚨 pic.twitter.com/5V67qIcT7F
Now, the Spurs face Game 3 on June 8 at Madison Square Garden in New York with a 2-0 deficit dogging them.
Wembanyama recovered from the "shock," as "Inside the NBA" analyst Charles Barkley called his first-half performance, to finish Game 2 with a game-high 29 points and 9 rebounds. But New York's trio of Towns (21 points), Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson (20 points each) continued the Knicks' torrid playoff run.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Wemby's would-be game-winner rims out as Knicks take NBA Finals Game 2
New York Knicks fan base celebrates Game 2 victory in NBA Finals
The New York Knicks’ fan base had a reason to feel good after the team secured a 2-0 lead in the 2026 NBA Finals on Friday, June 5.
The Knicks managed to fend off the Spurs’ late rally in the fourth quarter to secure a 105-104 victory. Karl-Anthony Towns led the way for New York with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges each scored 20 points.
Fans were offered the chance to attend watch parties outside of Madison Square Garden and at SummerStage in Central Park in New York on Friday night.
Here’s how the celebration unfolded after Game 2 was decided after Victor Wembanyama missed a potential game-winner for the Spurs.
Knick fans celebrate Game 2 victory
New York fans were out in the streets to celebrate the victory while police looked on. Fans could be heard chanting, "Knicks in Four!"
Knicks fans chanting “Knicks in four.” Deservingly so. pic.twitter.com/ZjoY2bJtrc
— Tyler Glasscock (@TylerGlasscock_) June 6, 2026
🚨 Live from NYC!!
— Jackson Heaberlin (@JacksonHeab) June 6, 2026
Knicks fans are forming a mob in celebration of their victory against The Spurs! pic.twitter.com/i4Fh9RTKfx
KAT is HYPED UP after the Knicks defeat the Spurs to take Game 2. 👏 pic.twitter.com/tKKn3p8nci
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 6, 2026
Fans outside MSG loved that KAT pass for the Bridges 3 👌 pic.twitter.com/RvrIGyhrkU
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 6, 2026
MSG is ALIVE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/bWqCNGkFef
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 6, 2026
Some Knicks fans are watching Game 2 of the NBA Finals on a projector outside in the streets of Manhattan 🔥
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 6, 2026
(📸: Adam Gray/Getty Images) pic.twitter.com/P7YeECEVO7
WE OUTSIDEEEEEEEEE pic.twitter.com/Uk6pfC4r8P
— KnicksMuse (@KnicksMuse) June 6, 2026
Jalen Brunson ties it because of course he does! pic.twitter.com/q6sK9y3EqJ
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 6, 2026
PANDEMONIUM at MSG when the Knicks sealed Game 2 ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/fC2nNqQpEK
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 6, 2026
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New York Knicks fans celebrate NBA Finals Game 2 victory