Eleven consecutive wins. A string of dominant blowouts. For the first time in 53 years, the New York Knicks are just four wins away from an NBA championship, and the entire city is at a boiling point.
But the mania isn’t just contained to the hardwood at Madison Square Garden. When massive, legacy-defining moments happen on the court, they trigger a massive secondary market reaction. According to new data released by eBay, the Knicks’ historic postseason run has sent Knicks basketball cards and memorabilia into the stratosphere.
This 2025 Padparadscha 1/1 Jalen Brunson sold for $17.4k on Goldin May 28th 2026, 2 days after the Knicks clinched a spot in the NBA Finals.
The Jalen Brunson Effect
No one embodies this gritty, dominant New York run more than Jalen Brunson. The Knicks captain, and last 2025’s clutch player of the year, has officially transcended standard stardom.
On May 26, the day after the Knicks officially clinched the Eastern Conference Finals, “Jalen Brunson” was searched more than 1,500 times per hour globally on eBay.
This 2018 National Treasures Jalen Brunson Rookie Patch Auto RPA RC #/99 PSA 10 POP 2 patch is currently listed for $150k on eBay.
While Brunson is leading the charge, the true story of this Knicks run has been their sheer depth and tough, cohesive play. That balanced dominance has caused search spikes for nearly every key piece of the roster. Comparing search data from the week leading up to Game 1 of the ECF (May 12–18) against the previous week’s baseline, the hobby’s obsession with New York is obvious:
Landry Shamet: up over 1,700%
New York Knicks (Team Gear/Cards): up over 440%
Jalen Brunson: up over 360%
Josh Hart: up over 260%
Mikal Bridges: up over 230%
Karl-Anthony Towns: up over 200%
OG Anunoby: up over 160%
Wemby’s Historic Performance
While New York owns the Eastern narrative, San Antonio’s phenom is generating Shohei Ohtani level hype.
On May 18, Victor Wembanyama became just the fourth player since 2000 to record a monstrous 40-point, 20-rebound playoff game. The historic masterpiece against the Oklahoma City Thunder sent shockwaves through the collecting community. On the night of the performance, global eBay users searched for Wembanyama more than 5,300 times per hour.
This 2023 Panini Prizm Victor Wembanyama 1/1 Black PSA 10 sold for $5.11M May 26th, 20206 | CardLadder
The following day (May 19), the scramble to secure his cards intensified, with specific searches for “Victor Wembanyama cards” surging over 300% compared to his mid-May baseline.
Sellers are moving quickly to cash in on the generational hype, too. Total eBay listings for Wembanyama items increased 40% in April 2026 compared to the opening weeks of the NBA season back in October 2025.
Capitalizing on the Moment
The hobby acceleration isn’t just happening on the secondary market, either, the manufacturers are already finding historic ways to capitalize on the upcoming Finals momentum.
Fanatics and Topps announced a massive, first-of-its-kind integration for the 2026 NBA Finals. As part of the league’s season-long celebration of America’s 250th anniversary, every single player taking the court during the Finals will wear a USA 250 patch on their jersey. These patches will be physically removed from the jerseys after each game. Select game-worn patches will then be embedded directly inside ultra-rare Topps trading cards.
It’s a brilliant play that perfectly aligns with the modern market’s obsession with scarcity and game-worn history. Instead of waiting months for products to catch up to the hype, collectors are being given a direct narrative link to the exact games crowning this year’s champion.
Every player in the 2026 NBA Finals will wear a USA 250 patch on their jersey. The patches will be removed after each game, with select game-worn patches later featured inside ultra-rare trading cards | Fanatics
The Takeaway
As the NBA Finals approach and the NBA Draft looms, the modern sports card market continues to act as a real-time ledger for fan attention. In 2026, the equation is simple: if you win on the court in May and June, you win the hobby.
Who are you collecting ahead of the NBA Finals? Let us know on Mantel.
When Mark Cuban sold the Dallas Mavericks, he said he got out in part because the NBA used to be a tech business (his strength) and was becoming a real estate business.
To that end, the Mavericks announced plans this week to build a new arena and surrounding entertainment district in the Valley View area of Dallas, about 12 miles north of their current arena (but within the Dallas city limits).
The goal is to have the team move in for the 2031-32 season, when the team's lease at the American Airlines Center is up.
"We have the opportunity to create a vibrant mixed-use destination anchored by a state-of-the-art arena, along with restaurants, entertainment options, public green spaces and family-friendly experiences," the team said in a statement announcing the deal. "Done thoughtfully and with community engagement, a project of this scale will serve as a meaningful economic catalyst for Dallas and its residents."
This should end the speculation that the new owners, the Adelson and Dumont families — which also run the Sands Casino empire — planned to move the team to Las Vegas. The Mavericks hired Rick Welts and made him CEO to oversee this arena project — he had overseen the Warriors' construction of the Chase Center in San Francisco.
The Mavericks are moving from near downtown Dallas to the former Valley View Mall site in North Dallas, where they have more than 100 acres to build out their entertainment district. That said, they are staying within Dallas, something the organization said was a priority.
"We believe in Dallas, and our priority has been clear from the beginning: keeping the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas," the Mavericks' statement said.
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer congratulates star player Kawhi Leonard after a game against the Detroit Pistons at the Intuit Dome in December 2025. (Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)
The sentencing of Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg to 14 years in federal prison on Monday brings the NBA a step closer to concluding its nine-month investigation into the Clippers allegedly circumventing the salary cap.
Sanberg pleaded guilty in October to federal charges of conspiring to bilk investors out of $248 million for portraying the now-defunct Aspiration as a “socially-conscious and sustainable banking services and investment products” firm.
The NBA has declined to comment on the status of the probe centered on $60 million invested in Aspiration by Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and the $28-million contract Clippers star Kawhi Leonard signed with Aspiration for endorsement and marketing work that he never delivered.
Players are allowed to have separate endorsement and other business deals, but at issue is whether the Clippers participated in arranging the side deal beyond simply introducing Aspiration executives to Leonard. Doing so would be a violation of Article 13 of the NBA collective bargaining agreement, punishable by a $4.5-million fine, the loss of a first-round draft pick and the voiding of Leonard’s contract.
The NBA Draft takes place June 23-24 and the Clippers have three picks, including the fifth overall selection. The league is not expected to release its findings until after the NBA Finals, which begin Wednesday between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs.
Clippers officials haven’t commented on the investigation. But Leonard, who has one year left on a three-year, $149.5 million contract that will pay him $50.3 million next season, told The Athletic after the Clippers’ season-ending game April 15 that “I think we’re going to be in the clear. I’m not stressing.”
Otherwise, among the few public comments about the investigation were letters submitted to federal court judge Stephen V. Wilson ahead of Sanberg’s sentencing by Ballmer and the law firm conducting the probe on behalf of the NBA.
The letter from Dave Anders of Wachtell Lipton stated that Sanberg provided documentation and information helpful to the NBA investigation during two in-person interviews.
“In all our dealings with Mr. Sanberg, both directly and through his counsel, he provided information that was consistent with our review of contemporaneous documents and other evidence,” Anders wrote. “Mr. Sanberg’s cooperation substantially assisted our investigation, including our ability to develop a more complete understanding of key events.”
Ballmer countered by asking Wilson for a stiff sentence in a five-page Victim Impact Statement posted on social media by his lawyer, David N. Kelley.
“Sanberg continues to exploit his fraud of Mr. Ballmer for his benefit, providing information to the NBA in return for a sentencing letter that the league submitted on his behalf,” Kelley wrote. “The reliability of Sanberg’s information is suspect given that he has pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges, and the government has made its own determination that he is not credible.”
Before handing down the sentence, Wilson made it clear that Sanberg’s credibility was questionable.
“He portrays himself as a do-gooder who was in business to help the world, but he did personally gain from his fraud,” Wilson said, later adding, “I would put the grade of his fraud at the zenith.”
Ballmer, a former longtime CEO of Microsoft who has owned the Clippers since 2014, accused Sanberg of targeting him for his well-known interest in environmental sustainability and exaggerating their relationship to convince others to invest in the fraudulent company. He said he met Sanberg only once.
Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration in September 2021. A month later, the Clippers announced a $300 million sponsorship deal with the company. Ballmer nearly granted Aspiration naming rights to the team’s new $2 billion venue as well, but instead chose financial services firm Intuit. Ballmer made an additional $10 million investment in Aspiration on March 9, 2023.
Ballmer was added in November as a defendant in a civil lawsuit against Sanberg and several others associated with Aspiration. Ballmer and the other defendants are accused by 11 investors in Aspiration of fraud and aiding and abetting fraud, with the plaintiffs seeking at least $50 million in damages.
Kelly contended that Ballmer was added as a defendant because of his “visibility and resources,” and portrayed the Clippers owner as a victim, saying “Mr. Ballmer’s losses are not measured solely, or even primarily, on a balance sheet. They are measured in the reputational damage that will take years to remediate, and in the chilling effect on future endeavors intended to do good.”
The lone public comment about the investigation from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver came during All-Star Weekend in February at the Intuit Dome when he described the issue as “enormously complex.”
“You have a company in bankruptcy, you have thousands of documents, multiple witnesses that needed to be interviewed,” Silver said.
The investigation was triggered by reports from podcaster Pablo Torre that Leonard’s sponsorship deal with Aspiration was to circumvent the salary cap. Torre and the staff of “Pablo Torre Finds Out” won a Pulitzer Prize for Audio Reporting for their efforts.
Jalen Brunson’s popularity among New Yorkers is reaching that of Billy Joel and Spider-Man as he leads the New York Knicks against the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals.
The hopes of Big Apple basketball fans rest with the explosive guard, and our Knicks vs. Spurs predictions call for Brunson to do damage from deep in Game 1.
My NBA picks like him to knock down at least three triples on June 3.
Knicks vs Spurs Game 1 prediction
Knicks vs Spurs best bet: Jalen Brunson Over 2.5 made threes (+135)
Where an attacking SGA would avoid the arc like an ex-girlfriend, Brunson is a pull-up threat the second he crosses half.
With Victor Wembanyama lurking in the key, the Knicks need to stretch a Spurs defense that doesn’t have much length beyond Wemby. That means smaller defenders and cleaner looks for Brunson.
Projections lean toward a trio of triples from Brunson with an underdog game script giving Over 2.5 threes a shot in the arm at plus-money.
COVERS INTEL: San Antonio didn’t have a defender within at least four feet on 93% of OKC’s 3-point attempts in the WCF. Brunson laps up those looks and went a collective 10 for 24 from distance in three meetings with the Spurs this season.
Knicks vs Spurs Game 1 same-game parlay
“Rest vs. Rust” is on everyone’s mind but New York’s extended break has the Knicks at nearly 100% health (save for Mitchell Robinson’s pinkie). That means OG Anunoby is recovered from a hamstring injury and leads the charge in frustrating Victor Wembanyama. New York has better defensive options than the Spurs, which makes them a dangerous Three-and-D foe.
I like the Knicks to keep it closer than bookies expect.
Jalen Brunson’s 3-point attempts prop sits at 6.5 O/U for Game 1, but if San Antonio plays the perimeter as passive as it did versus the Thunder, Brunson will make the most of that space.
He’s had to deal with longer defenders closing out in the first three rounds, but San Antonio doesn’t have that same size in the backcourt. Brunson’s projections and game script, with New York playing from behind, all give life to three or more makes from long range.
Karl-Anthony Towns has thrived as a “point forward” for New York in the playoffs, doubling his assist output from the regular season to almost six dimes per game.
With Wembanyama defending Josh Hart, in order to stay close to the key, KAT will get picked up by much smaller forwards. That creates space for cuts and screens underneath and the taller Towns can pass over the top to those waiting hands.
He can also drive from the top of the key or post up smaller defenders, collapsing the Spurs defense and kicking out to open shooters.
His Game 1 models aren’t as bullish on his assists (3.5), but KAT has recorded five or more dimes in nine of his last 11 playoff games. This matchup with San Antonio allows him to exploit his size edge as a passer again, something he didn't have against the bigger Cavaliers.
Knicks vs Spurs SGP
Knicks +4.5
Jalen Brunson Over 2.5 threes
Karl-Anthony Towns Over 4.5 assists
Knicks vs Spurs odds for Game 1
Spread: Knicks +4.5 | Spurs -4.5
Moneyline: Knicks +155 | Spurs -185
Over/Under: Over 218.5 | Under 218.5
Knicks vs Spurs betting trend to know
The Knicks are 31-11 SU when Jalen Brunson makes three or more 3-pointers. Find more NBA betting trends for Spurs vs. Knicks.
How to watch Knicks vs Spurs Game 1
Location
Frost Bank Center, San Antonio, TX
Date
Wednesday, June 3, 2026
Tip-off
8:30 p.m. ET
TV
ABC
Knicks vs Spurs latest injuries
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Despite the San Antonio Spurs dethroning the reigning league champions and looking like the team to beat heading into the best-of-seven NBA Finals, bettors are finding plenty of value with the underdog New York Knicks.
Key Takeaways
FanDuel and DraftKings both reported that more than 60% of the money is on underdog New York to win the NBA title.
Caesars has taken more Knicks tickets, but the handle is leaning toward the favored Spurs.
Several big bets with large payouts were made at opportune times.
Three U.S. sportsbooks told Covers this week that the Eastern Conference champs are taking more action than the Victor Wembanyama-led Spurs to win the series at around 2-to-1 odds before Wednesday’s Game 1.
“Early action has seen this series pretty evenly bet to this point,” David Lieberman, Caesars Sportsbook’s pro basketball lead, said. “As far as tickets, there are more on the Knicks so far by about 2:1, while the Spurs have taken slightly more money.”
FanDuel reported that the Knicks, who are currently +162 in the NBA Finals odds, are getting 56% of the bets and 65% of the handle. DraftKings said 63% of the money is backing New York, leaving the Spurs with 37% of the handle.
Bigger liability
Since the NBA championship market opened last summer, BetMGM has seen the Knicks take 14.1% of the total wagers, with San Antonio second at 12.2%. However, the Spurs, who took a smaller percentage of the money, are a bigger threat to the operator.
“The Spurs have the best player and the better overall team, making them clear favorites in the NBA Finals,” BetMGM sports trader Anthony Parenti said. “The sportsbook will be cheering for the Knicks as San Antonio is the biggest remaining liability on the futures book.”
The Spurs are a 4.5-point favorite at home in Game 1, and DraftKings reported early Wednesday that 55% of the handle and 54% of the bets have come in on the underdog Knicks to cover the spread.
Operator
Spurs’ series odds
Knicks’ series odds
FanDuel
-194
+162
DraftKings
-205
+170
BetMGM
-210
+170
Caesars
-195
+165
Spurs’ odds to get here
The Spurs started with the longer championship odds, opening at +2,500 in BetMGM’s odds last summer and ballooning to +6,600 when the season began with Wembanyama dealing with a calf issue.
By Christmas, San Antonio’s odds shortened to +2,200 and then down to +1,200 a week later. After winning 62 regular-season games and claiming the second seed in the Western Conference, the Spurs entered the playoffs at +450 to win it all at BetMGM. San Antonio was still +300 before they shocked the +140 favorite to win it all before the playoffs began in the conference finals in seven games.
Knicks’ odds to get here
New York opened with much lighter +700 odds to win the NBA title, but the Knicks lengthened to around +1,000 when the season began. Their odds spiked as high as +2,000 late in the regular season, when they won 53 games to take the third seed in the East.
New York’s chances grew dimmer when it was tied 2-2 in the first round against the Atlanta Hawks. Still, the Knicks enter the final series winning 12 consecutive games over the Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Cleveland Cavaliers, going from +900 at the start of the second round to win it all to under +200 heading into the final series.
Big payouts
Caesars reported multiple futures wagers that could result in significant payouts. A Kentucky bettor placed a $5,000 bet at the beginning of the regular season on the Spurs when they were +2,500 for a potential $125,000 win. A New York customer is looking to cash in for $120K on a $10K bet placed in February on the Spurs at +1,200.
A bettor in New Jersey found great value on the Knicks in April, getting $5K down to win $100K. A Colorado customer foresaw this exact matchup in October, betting $500 on a Knicks over Spurs final that would pay $95K. In February, a New York bettor took the Knicks over the Spurs for $1,000 with odds of +10,000, while a Caesars customer in Massachusetts did the same in early May, which would produce a $90K win on a $2K bet.
BetMGM said it took a $50,000 wager on the Spurs at +650 and a $22,000 futures bet on the Knicks at +2,200.
A bettor at @BetMGM wagered $20,000 on @nyknicks +2200 to win the NBA Championship
The top talents in the series are unsurprisingly getting the most betting action for NBA Finals MVP odds at multiple sportsbooks.
Wembanyama, who started the playoffs at +600 to win the award, is now -190 at BetMGM, while New York star guard Jalen Brunson has gone from +2,800 to +200 to take home series MVP.
Brunson is BetMGM’s biggest liability in the futures market with 16.5% of the tickets, with Wembanyama second at 14.4%. DraftKings said the Spurs’ second-year center is the most-bet player by handle. Brunson is second, with Karl-Anthony Towns third.
The Knicks’ center is getting the third-most tickets at BetMGM. Caesars said it has seen significant interest in Knicks forward OG Anunoby (+3,500) and Spurs guard Dylan Harper (+15,000).
How much Tyler Kolek do you think we’ll see in the NBA Finals? | Photo by David L. Nemec/NBAE via Getty Images
Hey, remember when the New York Knicks lost two playoff games to the Atlanta Hawks??
It’s true! They were down 2-1 in that series after a 109-108 loss in Game 3, which was back on April 23rd.
THEY HAVEN’T LOST SINCE!
Three straight against the Hawks to win that series 4-2, then a sweep of Philadelphia and a sweep of Cleveland in the Eastern Conference Finals! 11 straight wins, and now the Knicks are back in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999!
Unfortunately for our purposes here at Anonymous Eagle, OUR GUY Tyler Kolek only played nine total minutes against Cleveland in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. That seems a little weird because as we discussed in the preview/schedule post for that series, the Knicks are undefeated at 8-0 in the playoffs when head coach Mike Brown puts Kolek on the floor but now just 4-2 when Kolek does not play. GET IT TOGETHER, MIKE BROWN!
In fairness to Mike Brown, he’s the guy steering the ship on the best 10 game point differential in NBA history, regular season or playoffs…. and that margin is NOT CLOSE.
We should note that Kolek had eight points, a rebound, and an assist in eight minutes in New York’s 130-93 demolition of the Cavaliers in Game 4. That game was so lopsided that when it went to the half with the Knicks up 68-49, the Inside The NBA crew spent intermission openly discussing how much the Cavaliers had quit, up to and including an on screen stat package titled “QUITTING TIME.” That’s a yikes!
Anyway, the Knicks are in the NBA Finals, and after Saturday night’s Game 7, we know that they’ll be facing the San Antonio Spurs, making it a rematch of the 1999 NBA Finals. The Spurs went 62-20 in the regular season, which earned them the #2 seed in the Western Conference, and for the purposes of this series, that means San Antonio will have home court advantage in the Finals since New York was 53-29.
The Spurs got to the Finals by beating Portland, Minnesota and Oklahoma City in the Western Conference playoffs, which does mean that they beat the #1 seeded Thunder 4-3 in the conference finals and thus dethroned the reigning NBA Champions. San Antonio had to win Game 6 at home to force Game 7, and then they beat the Thunder 111-103 on the road to get to the Finals for the first time since 2014.
San Antonio was led in the Western Conference Finals by Victor Wembanyama, the 7’4”, 22-year-old phenom. He averaged 27.3 points and 10.9 rebounds per game against OKC, which includes a 16-for-40 effort behind the three-point line, and honestly: Big Vic shooting 40% on threes on top of everything should be declared illegal. He also chipped in 3.1 assists and a shockingly low 2.7 blocks per game against the Thunder, so he’s doing a little bit of everything for the Spurs.
The Spurs are more than just Le Slim, and it’s former UConn Husky Stephon Castle showing up as their #2 scorer from the conference finals at 18.0 points per game. He also led the squad in assists with 7.6 in the series, but don’t ignore De’Aaron Fox and his 6.2 per game either. There’s a little bit of noise in that signal since Fox did miss two games in the series, but he did play over 35 minutes in Game 7, so we’ll presume he’s good to go when the NBA Finals start on Wednesday.
One last thing, which I saw on Saturday night: Game 6 of the Finals, if necessary, will be at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, June 16th. France — Wembanyama’s home country! — plays their first match of the 2026 World Cup…. five hours earlier at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Could be quite the day for Francophones in the New York/New Jersey area, that’s all.
2026 NBA Finals
All games are on ABC, and all games start at 7:30pm Central
Game 1: Wednesday, June 3 Game 2: Friday, June 5 Game 3: Monday, June 8 Game 4: Wednesday, June 10 Game 5*: Saturday, June 13 Game 6*: Tuesday, June 16 Game 7*: Friday, June 19
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - MAY 30: Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs celebrates with Stephon Castle #5 and De'aaron Fox #4 after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder with a score of 111 to 103 to win Game Seven of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center on May 30, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Joshua Gateley/Getty Images) | Getty Images
I began writing for Pounding the Rock in October 2014 in the soft autumn afterglow of the Redemption Finals in June of that year. No one predicted that would be the Spurs’ last trip to the NBA Finals for over a decade.
Because I am both a Spurs fan in particular and a basketball fan in general, I would still watch the NBA finals each season, even without the Spurs involved. Long-time readers know that I cannot watch a sporting event without rooting for one team or the other. Those parts of my personality led me to write an annual column about which team Spurs fans should root for in each of the Finals which did not once include the Spurs after 2014.
Last year, the Finals were between OKC and Indiana. In my June 5, 2025 piece, I gave six reasons to choose the Indiana Pacers over OKC, and concluded with:
Like that Warriors team, this Thunder will be a massive problem for the league, and the Spurs, for many seasons to come. As a result, even if they aren’t already doing so, Spurs fan might as well start rooting against the Thunder. We certainly will be doing exactly that for the foreseeable future. Go Pacers!
When I wrote that nearly a year ago, no one (including mylsef) knew that our Spurs, not the Thunder, would become “the massive problem for the league” this season. As a result, for this season at least, I can retire my annual analysis of which team Spurs fans should root for in the NBA Finals. I have some more thoughts to share, but if you are reading this to determine who I think Spurs fans should root for in the 2026 NBA Finals, I don’t need to provide a lengthy analysis or a list of reasons to root for one team or another. Go Spurs Go!
Other thoughts
In my piece from last year, I explored the English derivation of the word “juggernaut”. I assumed it was Germanic. (Try saying “juggernaut” with a German accent. Very Germanic, right?) It turns out that the word comes from India, not Germany:
“An idea, custom, fashion, etc., that demands either blind devotion or merciless sacrifice,” 1854, a figurative use of Juggernaut, 1630s (Iaggernat), “huge wagon bearing an image of the god Krishna,” especially at the town of Puri, drawn annually in procession during which (apocryphally) devotees allowed themselves to be crushed under its wheels in sacrifice. Altered from Jaggernaut, a title of Krishna (an incarnation of Vishnu), from Hindi Jagannath, literally “lord of the world.”
I raise this word again this year because after the Spurs established themselves as true contenders this season, many pundits began describing the Spurs and Thunder as the two true juggernauts in the league. Many assumed that the winner of the Western Conference Finals — assumed by all to be either OKC or San Antonio — would crush the Eastern Conference winner like the Krishna devotees under the massive wheels of his huge wagon. It turns out that we may have a third juggernaut — the New York Knicks. Although their competition was not up to Western Conference standards, the Knicks smote their playoff competition in a truly historic manner. From The Athletic:
“The Knicks enter as the hottest team in the history of the NBA playoffs. They have won 11 games in a row, against the Hawks, 76ers and Cavaliers. In running up a 12-2 playoff record, the average score of their games has been Knicks 120, Opponents 101. New York’s 19.4-point margin per game is, for the moment, six points ahead of any other postseason team since the NBA-ABA merger.”
Despite this historic dominance, and the Knicks’ massive rest advantage, the Knicks are 2-1 underdogs to a team who was picked as a possible Play-In Tournament participant at the start of the season. Of course, the Knicks have had a spotty history in the 50+ years since their last title, while the Spurs won a crown or two (or five) while the Knicks were flaming out each year. And the Spurs have several perimeter defenders a little bit better that the Harden/Mitchell backcourt that the Knicks’ guards torched in the Eastern Conference Finals. That being said, 2 t0 1 still seems a bit high.
The player of the game for the Spurs in Game 7 was Julian Champagnie. He went 6 for 10 from three, scored 20 points on 11 shots, and was a game-leading +16 during his 38 minutes on the floor. For much of the time down the stretch of an absolute must-win Game Seven on the road, Mitch Johnson went with his four top-5 lottery picks, and Julian Champagnie.
In a related note, the absolute play of the game was Luke Kornet’s block of Isaiah Hartenstein’s breakaway dunk attempt.
That play happened with just under seven minutes left in the fourth quarter and the Spurs up 97-91. Absent that block, OKC would have cut the lead to four, probably forcing a Spurs time-out with the OKC fans making it impossible for anyone to hear. Instead, the Spurs got the ball back and scored, turning the game into a much more comfortable (and quiet) 99-91 eight-point lead. During the six minutes he played, Kornet had the same number of blocks as Victor Wembanyama (1), and two more offensive rebounds (3 to 1) — and hustled into the key play of the game that sent the Spurs into the NBA Finals.
Why do I mention Champagnie and Kornet together? Each of them were undrafted out of college. Very Spursian. They join other key Spurs from the past who were either undrafted or second round picks: Avery Johnson, Manu Ginobili, Patty Mills, DannyGreen! and many others. The Spurs’ proud franchise was built not only on top picks like the Admiral, the Great Duncan and Victor, but also on players other NBA teams decided were not good enough to play in the league.
I haven’t done a Fun with Box Scores edition in quite a while, largely because Pounding the Rock has a guy who does it much better than I can. But Game Seven’s box score has some notable items. For instance, both teams shot 45% from the field, but the Spurs went 17/40 from three, while OKC was 12/35. Put another way, the Spurs shot five more threes — and made all of them.
Also, Stephon Castle had the devil of a game: 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 6 turnovers. The Spurs’ nuns still forgave him because he had 16 points and 4 offensive rebounds. Ryan Harper had 3 offensive rebounds, meaning the two young Spurs guards combined for 7 offensive rebounds.
Another cool stat — after OKC got 9 offensive rebounds in the first half, they had only 1 in the entire second half. You think the Spurs coaching staff may have emphasized that at halftime? Yeah, me too. The Spurs got 5 more offensive rebounds for the game (15-10), and had 1 fewer turnover (13-12), which means 6 extra opportunities to score in a game decided by 8 points. By the way, the 111-103 final was the second closest game of the series. A very odd series, with two excellent games bookending five contests which were not in doubt in the fourth quarter.
One final question: why does ESPN always have Dylan Harper listed last on the Spurs box score? It is certainly not alphabetical, or based on his uniform number. Maybe because he went to Rutgers?? If anyone has a logical answer, please drop it in the comments.
One last stat: this one from halftime of Game Seven. The Spurs were up 3 points, 46-43. In the first half, the Spurs were 7 for 8 from the free throw line, while the Thunder were 4 for 8. Which means that with all the shooting and rebounding and steals and defense in the first half, the Spurs were ahead because they made three more free throws than OKC on their eight attempts.
That also made it odd that OKC’s coach chose to replace two of his starters to start the second half. I thought that sent an unusual message to a team that had the best record in the league the past two seasons. It might have been better to tell his guys “we got this”, “we are at home and we weathered the storm”, and yes, “we are the defending champs, let’s go out and show the world.” Instead, OKC benched two starters.
In contrast, when Stephon Castle got his 4th foul in the third quarter, and Victor got his 5th foul with over seven minutes left in the game, Mitch Johnson subbed them out for less than two minutes each, and then sent them back into the game. He trusted his guys to play without fouling, and switched Castle off SGA for much of the remaining game. (During Victor’s minute-long rest, Kornet has his chase down block — and then immediately subbed out to much adulation from the Spurs’ bench.) Johnson knew that the team needed Castle and Victor on the court for the Spurs to win Game Seven on the road, and he was right. Nice job by the Spurs’ head coach — also a rookie in his first playoffs.
Several good quotes to mention. First, Anthony Edwards said this about the Spurs, and in particular their offense when Victor was not in the game: “It made it hard on us because now everybody (on the Spurs) was playing free,” Edwards said. “They play egoless basketball anyway, but they made it a little tougher.”
As a coach, I want opposing players to describe my team’s offense as “egoless”. Love it. The second quote was from Reggie Miller after Keldon Johnson, who lives on a farm, drained two key threes in the fourth quarter: “His goats are very happy.”
Finally, my buddy Ferg dropped this dime describing Chet Holmgren’s four point, four rebound performance in Game Seven. “He Chet the bed”.
Because this is my “rooting for” post, I end by pointing out that the Spurs were clearly the fan favorites in the Western Conference Finals. Other than people from Oklahoma, or the OKC players’ close relatives, it seems that everyone was either rooting for the Spurs or against the Thunder. I don’t know if that will carry over to the Finals. There are an awful lot of New York Knicks fans out there, and I mean awful when describing Knicks’ fans. (To my Knicks fan buddies, sorry for the cheap shot.)
Anyway, because I traditionally root against teams from New York, my choice is doubly easy. I just don’t believe the series will be.
Stephen Curry's season-long sneaker free agency is over with the international star announcing on social media a deal to take his Curry Brand to Chinese show powerhouse Li-Ning.
"The future of Curry Brand will be powered by a company truly rooted in sports and innovation," Curry said in his post and open letter announcing the deal. "A partner dedicated to creating quality products with sneakers that I believe in that will continue to deliver at the highest level...
"Together, we will continue the Curry Brand mission with stories, platforms and products that will inspire the next generation around the globe."
Curry becomes the biggest basketball star signed to Li-Ning, which also has contracts with Jimmy Butler (Curry's teammate on the Warriors) and De'Angelo Russell, as well as former NBA player and Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade.
A 10-year deal means Curry and Li-Ning are thinking about how to continue and grow the brand beyond his NBA playing days. Curry, 38, has played 17 seasons in the NBA and has talked about being much closer to the end of his career than the start.
Curry had been with Under Armour for a dozen years, but last November the two sides announced they had parted ways. That led to a long season of sneaker free agency, during which Curry paid tribute to the legends of the game by wearing their shoes on the court. At the end of the season, Curry auctioned off those shoes to raise money for his Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation, and they raised $1.7 million.
Curry's split with Under Armour allowed him to take the Curry Brand with him, and his brand can sign players to endorsement contracts (the way a player can sign with the Jordan brand rather than directly with Nike). This deal also shows Curry is thinking globally about growing his brand.
Li-Ning plans to build Curry Brand stores in the coming years in both the United States and China.
On today’s episode, Jack Borman of Locked on Timberwolves joins the show to break down what the Minnesota Timberwolves’ offseason could look like:
— The Timberwolves will have re-signing Ayo Dosunmu at the top of their offseason priority list. The question is how long it will take to re-sign Dosunmu and how that will affect the rest of the roster.
— The Wolves will be able to offer Dosunmu more money and years than other teams, which puts them in the driver’s seat to retain the 26-year-old guard.
— Could the Timberwolves look to trade Donte DiVincenzo this offseason? It would be a difficult decision to trade an injured player set to miss most or all of the season, but the Wolves might value using his $12.5 million contract to help match salary in a potential trade.
— There is value in having DiVincenzo on the roster even if he does not play many games on the court. If his contract expires on the Wolves’ book, it would make it much easier for the team to re-sign him next offseason.
— The NBA announced a new draft lottery system that makes it so that the bottom three records in the league receive fewer ping-pong balls than the teams above them in the standings. Could this increase the value for Julius Randle or Rudy Gobert in a trade?
— If the Wolves decide to move on from Randle, a team at the bottom of the standings might have interest in Randle as he could help them avoid finishing with one of the three worst records, which would maximize their chance of winning the draft lottery.
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 1: Stephon Castle #5 of the San Antonio Spurs drives to the basket during the game against the New York Knicks on March 1, 2026 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs enter this year’s NBA Finals on a collision course of experience vs. exuberance. The Knicks return to the Finals for the first time since 1999 with a group of veterans in their prime with shared playoff experience. The Spurs’ latest iteration to make the Finals comes during their first playoff run behind French phenom Victor Wembanyama. They’re entering the series just three days after wrapping up a grueling seven games against the Thunder, while the Knicks have had an extra week to rest up and tinker in the lab.
To the extent that regular season matchups may resemble the Finals product, the Knicks hold the upper hand – winning two of three, including the NBA Cup championship game and a 25-point blowout in March. But both teams responded to playoff adversity by evolving into new forms. FanDuel’s odds on the NBA Finals champion are a window into the complex matchups and adjustments that will go into determining the champion, and the Knicks now find themselves as the betting underdogs.
KNICKS (+168)
The Knicks have been playing incredible basketball. They’ve won 11 consecutive playoff games, all by double digits. Their 19.4 point differential during the 14-game playoff run is nearly five points better than the next best differential in playoff history. They’ve been grabbing nearly 60% of rebound chances, and outscored the Cavs in both second-chance and transition points in their closeout game.
Jalen Brunson has been the tip of the spear, averaging 26.9 points and 6.6 assists. Karl-Anthony Towns unlocked a new skill pack on offense, averaging a career-high 5.9 assists and more than 10 boards per game. His ability to pull Wemby out of the lane was key in their regular season success.
Beyond the stars, the Knicks’ entire playoff rotation has been excellent. OG Anunoby has stuffed the stat sheets, averaging 19.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and knocking down 48% from deep. Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart have scored in double digits and contribute to a swarming defense that averaged over 10 steals per game in the ECF. Landry Shamet probably won’t keep shooting 91% from three, but Miles McBride, Mitchell Robinson, and Jordan Clarkson are solid options at key matchups.
SPURS (-200)
The Spurs leap-frogged to the front of the Western Conference ahead of schedule. Conventional wisdom (and historical precedent) says that championship teams need multiple rounds of live playoff experience to fortify their layers of adjustments. But that experience also exposes the risks of injuries and salary cap management, whereas youth can supply a reservoir of energy to burst through growing pains. As each series went longer, the Spurs got better.
Wemby’s 41 points and 24 rebounds in game 1 against OKC was emblematic of his ability to control entire games with nearly unlimited offensive and defensive arsenals. He can completely close off the paint or lock down on the perimeter, and he posted 48.1/40.0/89.5 shooting splits against OKC’s elite defense. He’s averaging a 23-point double-double with 3.5 blocks in the playoffs.
The league now revolves around Wembenyama, but the emergence of the Spurs’ young role players and reserves has been the story of their resilience. Stephon Castle took on the top defensive matchups while averaging 19.2 points and 6.7 assists over the playoffs. Dylan Harper looks like a potential future MVP with advanced feel on both ends. Julian Champagnie and Devin Vassell both played tough defense and shot well on more than six 3PAs per game in the WCF. With De’Aaron Fox back from an ankle injury, the Spurs’ offense is deep with dynamic playmakers.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - DECEMBER 10: Kyrie Irving #11 and Daniel Gafford #21 of the Dallas Mavericks high five during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the Emirates NBA Cup Quarterfinals on December 10, 2024 at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The winds of change are blowing for the Dallas Mavericks. The magnitude of those winds is yet to be determined, but the likelihood of them being gale-force appears higher than not at this point. Already, the Mavs have hired a new President in Masai Ujiri, a new GM in Mike Schmitz and they will soon find a new coach to replace Jason Kidd.
ESPN’s Zach Kram recently suggested six different trade ideas for the upcoming NBA offseason, two of which featured the Mavericks. Specifically, one trade centered on Kyrie Irving with another revolving around Daniel Gafford, as previously covered here at Mavs Moneyball. Each of the trade proposals held a logical basis for both sides and made for some intriguing discussions, but can the Mavs actually “win” either trade, much less the aggregate of both, as proposed?
The Gafford proposal
In this proposal, the Mavs ship Gafford out to the Los Angeles Lakers for a return of Jarred Vanderbilt, Dalton Knecht and pick 25 in this year’s Draft.
The Irving proposal
In this proposal, the Mavs move Irving to the Detroit Pistons and get Isaiah Stewart, Caris LeVert, Ron Holland and pick 21 in this year’s Draft.
If both deals were made, that means Dallas goes into draft night with first round picks 9, 21, 25 and 30. Not bad for a team that is currently all but devoid of draft capital until 2030, but also not the whole story. These deals would also add four wing players (Vanderbilt, Knecht, LeVert and Holland) to a roster that currently includes Cooper Flagg, Max Christie, Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington, Naji Marshall, Khris Middleton and Caleb Martin.
Of course, roster size and general logic dictate that further moves would have to be made before the final roster was settled upon, but there are concerning ramifications of these deals regardless.
Taking on contracts for too-few picks
The incoming players in these proposals cause more harm than good. Not necessarily because the players are bad or have bad contracts per se, but because none of those players necessarily move the dial more than what Dallas already has. The Mavs would be giving themselves unnecessary work trying to figure out who and how to move players like Washington, Marshall, Christie, Middleton, Vanderbilt, Knecht and/or LeVert. They simply can’t all fit. Dallas instead should use their resources to acquire players that fit a more pressing need, rather than stack more wings on a wing-heavy team.
Too many 2026 draft picks; too few picks overall
Consider this – it’s quite difficult to draft four players in the same draft, then actually implement all four toward a positive impact going forward. Yes, Dallas needs to restock the cupboard in a major way, but they aren’t necessarily achieving that efficiently with these moves. Getting two late-first round picks in the 2026 draft looks good on paper, but it does not solve the problem of having little control over future drafts through 2030. If Dallas is going to trade their starting point guard and former NBA Champion along with their (sometimes) starting center, they simply need to get many more picks, across many more years, than they would be getting in these moves as proposed.
If the Mavs selected four players in June, the presumption is that all four would be part of the youth movement rebuild around Flagg. It’s not a stretch to think at the very least two of those players would be starters (especially with the departure of two vets), maybe more. Sounds like a fun young team, but it also sounds like a college squad playing in the NBA. Further, all of said players would then be coming up for rookie extensions at the same time, so you had better hit and hit big on the selections, then be ready to pay everyone at the same time. It’s just hard to believe this is practical in any real sense. I understand the message from Ujiri is that all moves will be made for the future, but that doesn’t mean all moves need to be made right now.
If Dallas elects to move Gafford or Irving (especially the latter), they need to be targeting a better cross-section of picks over a wider range of future years. If they can manage to pick up a few current NBA players that fit a need, all the better.
I invite you to follow me @_80MPH on X, and check back often at Mavs Moneyball for all the latest on the Dallas Mavericks.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - MAY 30: Jared McCain #3 of the Oklahoma City Thunder attempts a shot against Luke Kornet #7 of the San Antonio Spurs during the first quarter in Game Seven of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center on May 30, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s been interesting to watch Jared McCain through the playoffs, as he radically exceeded most people’s expectations. It’s also been fun to watch the reactions of Philadelphia fans and Sixers writers as they realized that Philly really blew the McCain trade.
In Oklahoma City, McCain emerged as a major force. Like we saw at Duke, he played with immense confidence and enthusiasm, and he was a real thorn in the side of the San Antonio Spurs.
“I never had expectations for myself coming in,” he said. “Once I knew that I can provide some help for this team, it was almost like, let me. I want to do anything I can to help this team win.
“If you told me four months ago that I would start in some Western Conference Finals games and play the role that I was able to play, not that I thought you were crazy, but I would look at you a little weird.”
What’s also striking is what his teammates have said about him. Take Isaiah Hartenstein:
“I think he’s a special human being. I mean, I think just in general, no one will change the way he is. I think I’ve never seen someone so happy every single day and I think it just gives something to a locker room that… I can’t be mad looking at him, if that makes sense.”
And Jaylin Williams said this:
“He’s just a good dude… he’s confident in himself, he’s confident in his ability, he’s confident in his own skin… he’s happy, he makes a good time, regardless of what it is… he always brightens whatever room that he’s in.”
Philly made a mistake in letting McCain go. After what we’ve seen, it’s hard to imagine the Thunder repeating it.
The Knicks are in the NBA finals for the first time since 1999. Photograph: David Maxwell/EPA
Zohran Mamdani’s relentless quest to corner the youth vote has continued with the news that New York’s mayor has repealed bedtime for the city’s children during the hometown Knicks’ NBA finals run.
The Knicks are in the finals for the first time since 1999, and the series against the San Antonio Spurs starts on Wednesday.
Mamdani signed an executive order on Monday titled “repealing kids’ bedtimes for Knicks Finals run.”
In words that will strike terror into the hearts of parents hoping to get their kids up for school for the next few weeks, section one of Mamdani’s order reads: “I hereby direct that bedtimes in the City of New York are repealed during the NBA Finals so that kids of all ages can root for their New York Knicks.”
The Knicks are looking to win their first title since 1973. “As Mayor, you’re forced to make many difficult decisions,” Mamdani wrote on social media. “This was not one of them.”
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - MAY 30: Keldon Johnson #3 of the San Antonio Spurs celebrates a basket against against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the fourth quarter in Game Seven of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center on May 30, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Spurs did it. After starting the season with relatively low expectations, they made the NBA Finals, taking down the reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, in the process. The odds were against them, but with talent, preparation, and some luck, they will now battle the New York Knicks, hoping to win their sixth title.
San Antonio is favored almost two-to-one in FanDuel to take home the Larry O’Brien trophy, but before we get into the Finals matchup, it’s time to take a look at the huge win in the Conference Finals. To do that, J.R. Wilco and Jeje Gomez discuss what the series against the Thunder meant and highlight some of the biggest and most memorable plays that got the Spurs back to the biggest stage.
J.R. Wilco: The Finals, my friend. The Finals! I’m on vacation in Colorado at the moment, sitting out on a porch and looking out at one of my favorite views in the world: some of the foothills at the edge of the San Juan Mountains, not too far from Castle Rock (one of the most significant archaeoastronomical sites in North America, but that’s a topic for another time).
About six hours after the Spurs punched their ticket to the Finals, we woke up to get in the car to come up here from Austin. Being here in one of my favorite places on the planet resonates with San Antonio’s achievement of getting past OKC by climbing past the lack of experience with a first year coach and a 22 year old team leader, taking on the reigning champs (complete with MVP) in a seventh game on the road and getting ready to play the Knicks just like a 22 year old Tim Duncan did 27 years ago.
What a trip it was to get there, since about eight months ago Victor Wembanyama created a headline by stating his expectation that San Antonio would skip the play-in and snag the 6th seed in the west. High expectations for a team that hadn’t seen the postseason since 2019, but you could honestly get vertigo from peeking down at the 6 seed from the lookout point the Spurs have reached on their climb prior to their last ascent to the peak of the Larry O!
You and I have had so many conversations this year around the topic of our discontent with San Antonio’s offense, but I could argue that it was the adjustments that the coaching staff implemented, not only on defense but on offense, that weren’t just impressive in keeping the Thunder off balance but allowed them to find the cracks through which they could score.
Just consider the Game 6 approach of having Wemby drag iHart out to the three-point line and putting him in actions that neutralized his physicality. Then compare that to the Game 7 design, which went back to so many plays from mid-season (that OKC had forced the Spurs offense away from since early in the series) with Victor using his gravity in hard rolling to rim to set up deep shooting and secondary offense to take advantage of a Thunder defense in rotation.
It’s the kind of sophisticated approach that I wasn’t sure the team could develop, and when I consider the youth of the squad that executed it, I feel myself going beyond mere acknowledgement into full-on celebration. How about you: what stood out from the last seven games — particularly the last two they won while facing elimination?
Jesus Gomez: I remember back in the day when your vacations used to routinely overlap with some deep playoff runs. That wasn’t an issue in the last few years, but it’s great to see the return of a tradition that will likely continue for a decade, at least.
I did think back to our discussions about the offense during Game 6 and Game 7, and I think this series, in general, showcased that sometimes, you don’t need overly complex sets when you have incredible talent. You mentioned the adjustments and the shifting strategies, and Mitch Johnson does deserve credit for that. But the best thing he might have done was put the game in the hands of the players.
The fetishisation of Xs and Os, of which I’m definitely guilty, often overshadows how fun it is to see a player just get a bucket and how sometimes the best coaching consists of simply putting that player in a good position to do so. While we were bemoaning the lack of set plays that offered multiple options, the staff was probably thinking that their guys would be fine with just a simple cross-screen or pindown, and they were proven right. I disagree with you on it being a sophisticated approach, but sometimes you don’t need sophistication, and insisting upon it is foolish. Make sure to remind me of that when I inevitably start complaining again during the Finals.
Enough about strategy. What impressed me the most about the last two games, in particular, was the aggressiveness the team showed. It’s not that I was expecting them to shy away from the moment, but it was a long series against a physical opponent. The bench had been bad. I kept fearing we’d run into a moment in which they just couldn’t keep up with the energy level, but it never happened. I guess that’s the good thing about young teams.
And speaking of youth, how impressed were you with the young guards? Castle bounced back from two high-turnover games like a veteran, and maybe I’m still riding the high from Game 7, but Dylan Harper looked Manuesque in the way he made the play the team needed. I’m not saying we have a Shabazz Muhammad situation in our hands, but they don’t act like we normally expect guys their age to act to me.
J.R.: You can count on me to remind you of this conversation the moment you start griping again, and we can agree to disagree (won’t be the first time) about the strategy piece.
The team showed elite aggression, and I agree that it was extremely impressive. When I see an aggressive team, I think about the confidence that’s required to maintain that kind of approach. That this team is as sure of themselves as they are is a credit to the whole organization; that they’re this confident while being so young is the product of … genetics? The foolhardiness of youth? That their aggressive confidence hasn’t written checks their talent and preparation couldn’t cash is either a function of the team’s cohesiveness or of dumb luck the degree to which this league has never seen. Or it could just mean that they have the NBA’s only alien playing for them.
And I’m beyond impressed with the young guards. Castle is an untamed bronco that’s never seen a creek bed he couldn’t jump across. While his toughness and his will are unquestionable, it’s his decision-making that’s easy to sometimes second-guess. But as his ability to read defenses catches up to his grit, he’s displayed a level of calm under pressure that’s sustaining him in the midst of his education. I’m stunned that he’s able to play at such a high level while undergoing on-the-job training in an environment as intense as the WCF. I can’t say enough good things about him.
But when it comes to Harper, I’m concerned about my ability to capture it all in words. It’s like, how can any rookie be so good?! He plays at his own pace, which is great, but he also sometimes enforces his pace on the action. As a rookie. He drives with the assurance of a 10-year veteran, and he took Lu Dort all the way to the basket, shrugging him off like he was Trae Young before simply laying the ball in the hoop. As a rookie! He’s got the best post moves of any Spur since Boris Diaw’s Cream Shake, you know the one where Boris would start with his back to the basket 18 feet from the rim and make four or five post moves and somehow end up 3 feet from the rim? Dylan does that too, as (say it with me) a rookie! And I haven’t even discussed his remarkable defense that has one of the best analysts on YouTube in awe.
But the biggest thing for me is the way he has been able to do something that no one but Manu Ginóbili did as regularly for the Spurs: repeatedly be in the right place at the right time to make the right play to turn a game from defeat to victory. During the game, I was texting with Gary Quan, who almost has as big a crush on Manu as you and I do. During the third quarter, we were remarking about how well Dylan was playing and how far beyond his years his game looked. I told him I was reminded of an early postseason series in 2003 and a rebound that Ginóbili made on the baseline that saved the game for the Spurs. Not 15 minutes later, Harper made not one but two separate baseline rebounds and put one of them back in for two points. He’s a gem beyond value right now and he’s only going to get better.
4. Dylan Harper’s huge offensive rebound
What’s your main takeaway from a WCF that seems prepped to be a recurring matchup for years to come?
Jeje: Now I’m officially concerned because too many of us see some Manu in Harper. Are we setting him up to fail, because few players have ever been as good as Manu? Wait, this is a time for celebration. There will be years to worry about that, so I’ll leave it alone for now.
I don’t know if I have a main takeaway involving OKC, because it’s hard to say much about a team missing their second-best player for six games, but I have a few about the league. The first one is that title windows are not as long as people think in today’s NBA, and “who can stop this team?” takes should be used more sparingly. A Thunder repeat seemed inevitable at one point and the ascension of the Spurs and some bad injury luck stopped that in its tracks. So, as I watch a San Antonio core that should keep the franchise as the best in the West or, at worst, the second-best team in the conference for the foreseeable future, I still remain cautious and in the moment. As far as I’m concerned, this is their title chance. You will not hear any “playing with house money” comments from me.
Second, I’ll go back to the season preview and reiterate how much fun it is to have great expectations. Back then, a playoff berth was all most of us thought the Spurs should get, but as the season progressed and it was clear they were much better than I estimated, the more invested I became in their success. I don’t begrudge the “ahead of schedule” crowd for trying to lower the stakes for a young team with an inexperienced coach and a front office that didn’t go all in, but I personally would rather get my heart broken by a team I overrate than be pleasantly surprised by overachievement. And while I picked the Thunder to win, I have believed for a while that this team was a true contender.
Finally, we have to address the giraffe in the room. It’s surprising we’ve gotten this far without gushing about Wembanyama, and particularly his defense. He faced Rudy Gobert and Chet Holmgren, widely considered the two best defenders behind Wemby, and their impact didn’t come close to matching The Alien’s. What we’ve seen so far feels special. Overloading the side SGA operated in was smart, as was trapping him, at least for a while, but Wembanyama is the reason the Thunder couldn’t score like they normally do.
The fact that he appears to be a fantastic leader and a burgeoning elite offensive player on top of it seems almost unfair. How can a 7’5 center start Game 7 as the point guard and make it work? I didn’t think he could do anything that would surprise me anymore, but the moment Wemby faced help defense on a drive and found the open man did the trick.
But how about you? Did you have any major takeaways about the matchup in particular? And is there anything we haven’t discussed that you think deserves at least a mention?
J.R.:I guess my first takeaway is to echo what I heard Zach Lowe say: the way this series will be remembered years from now is going to be due to the phenomenal Game 1 and the excellent Game 7. People will be looking at the box scores for games two through six and shrugging their shoulders. I mean, the ground is largely prepped for a takedown of the series in 15 years by some 20-year-old YouTuber who’s right how jist happy to have graduated from kindergarten. He’ll be ranting about how you can’t call the 2026 Western Conference finals one of the great series in NBA history because five of the seven games were practically blowouts. And that’s fine. I have zero problems with anyone who thinks this series shouldn’t mean as much as people say it did because if they haven’t lived through it. They won’t realize how deadly the Thunder were for the last three years and how everyone assumed that they would be “the team that everyone’s aiming for“ and how big a deal it was that anyone was able to upset them.
My second takeaway is an odd one, but I have to go on record to say I really feel for Chet Holmgren. We are basketball fans, sure, but we are people first and it’s good to realize that Chet is a person. Falling short in the public eye to the extent he did is not something I would wish on anyone. It’s so human, though, and you’ve got to feel for him. First, he didn’t ask to be in Wemby’s sights. It’s not his fault he was given the trophy all those years ago when Wemby wasn’t.
Second, we’ve all been there. Failure is more common than success. In fact, Chet is way more relatable than Victor because most of us aren’t the best in the world at something that happens publicly. And it’s way more frequent that you want to accomplish something and get sat down in the middle of it. Third, I’ve suspected for a while that Wemby was in his head, but I wasn’t sure until the end of the third quarter of Game 6. That’s the play where Vic blocked Holmgren’s buzzer-beating attempt on Thursday.
2. Wemby demoralizes Chet
Chet just sat on the floor afterwards like “yup, that’s what happens to me” instead of popping up as most athletes do. I feel for the guy, and as long as it doesn’t cost the Spurs a title in the future, I’d like for him to regain his mojo.
Third Takeaway: Isn’t it ridiculous that it’s practically impossible to quantify just how quickly the Spurs have learned? As much as it’s been a talking point in San Antonio that experience isn’t necessary, that’s just a reaction to the fact that people were using the lack of experience to disqualify the Spurs from being able to go all the way. Well, here they are as the champs of the West. There’s no disputing that. So we don’t need to pretend that experience doesn’t matter, because it absolutely does. It’s just that this team, as it’s constructed with its coaching staff and players, can learn on the fly (i.e. accumulate experience) faster than any other team I’ve ever rooted for. This is the kind of thing I’ve never seen before, which I guess makes sense because the last time a younger team made it to the finals was 1977!
Takeaway number four is the play that I will always call the Kornet Contest. That moniker is no longer in my mind as something that he does to throw off three-point shooters. It’s the chase-down block that turned away Hartenstein, preserved the lead, and probably the game.
It’s such an impressive play that he got there in time, but also because he didn’t try to block the dunk. He just contested and let Isaiah push the ball right into his hand. Such an amazing play! I’ve loved Kornet ever since he came to San Antonio, and I can’t be more excited that the play of the game that practically clinched the series was made by the guy so many were ragging on for essentially not being Victor Wembanyama. By my account, that’s the second game this season he’s saved with a block, and I might as well add that he blocked the Atlanta Hawks from making a bad decision with that promotion they were going to do until he wrote a blog post. Keep up the good work, Luke. You’re all right in my book.
Final takeaway: Would anyone object to giving a Co-MVP award to the Corgi?
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 28: Dalen Terry #14 of the Philadelphia 76ers dribbles the ball during the game against the Boston Celtics on April 28, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Sixers sure did corner the market on mid-first-rounders from the 2022 draft. While the team’s biggest addition of the 2026 trade deadline may have been converting Dominick Barlow from a two-way to a standard NBA contract, it at least gave them more flyers to take for the rest of the season.
After Barlow was converted, the team signed Dalen Terry, who had been traded and waived after spending the first three and a half seasons of his NBA career with the Bulls. Terry was sent from Chicago to the New York as a part of deal that helped the Knicks salary dump Guerschon Yabusele. New York rerouted Terry along with some second-round picks to New Orleans in exchanger for Jose Alvarado. Terry was able to sign with the Sixers after being waived by the Pelicans.
Terry arrived in Philadelphia as a player with intriguing tools, but still trying to put them together to become a regular rotation member. The 13.5 minutes per game he averaged were the most in a season with Chicago. He’s a great athlete who has shown ability to defend at an NBA level, but has yet to develop any consistency on the other end to be dependable.
After signing a two-way with Philly, Terry played in 14 games. Like MarJon Beauchamp, most of those appearances came in a stretch during March where Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, Paul George, and even Kelly Oubre Jr. were all on the bench.
He averaged 4.1 points as well 1.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists playing 12 minutes a game as a Sixer. As someone who’s always been a low-volume shooter, he made 25% of his threes in Philadelphia after shooting 41% in his time last season with the Bulls.
His high-point was helping a shorthanded group escape with a win over a tanking Memphis Grizzlies team in March. Terry provided crucial point-of-attack defense on Ty Jerome. He was also able to show off how his athleticism helps him in transition as he was a +23 in a 10-point win.
Two-way wing Dalen Terry gave the Sixers an important lift in his first high-leverage minutes with the team in Tuesday's win over Memphis. He was picking up Grizzlies ball-handlers full court and was a +23 in 22 minutes: pic.twitter.com/Z4DUothewF
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) March 12, 2026
That blend made Terry the most intriguing of the three two-ways the Sixers rostered for the latter half of the season. His defense was the most ready-made skill of the bunch, and was also the most physically equipped to keep developing. Every now and then he would have a flash like this to affirm that belief.
It is hard to imagine a player with three made shots in a game having a highlight reel this good, but these are some shockingly impressive Dalen Terry moves and baskets: pic.twitter.com/hrs82woHJ3
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) March 13, 2026
As his three-point percentage in Philly would indicate, those flashes were few and far between. He saw even less playing time than Beauchamp as the top of the roster shuffled back in the lineup. He would only appear again for four minutes in the regular season finale.
Potentially entering his fifth year in the league, Terry will run into the same two-way eligibility problems Beauchamp will as well. He’s an even more intriguing flyer to have on a two-way spot, but he’s yet to show he’s worth one of the full 15 roster spots for a team that is at least trying to be serious enough to make the playoffs.
Should the Sixers be able to fill out the rest of their bench with better shooting than last season, he could be an interesting gadget player to bring on for the league minimum. That’s still a big “if” though, and the Sixers certainly have bigger battles to tackle this offseason.
COVERS INTEL: San Antonio didn’t have a defender within at 
