Category: NBA

Nae’Qwan Tomlin’s emergence as a helpful fill-in rotation player was a pleasant surprise for the Cleveland Cavaliers. This led to his two-way deal being converted to a standard contract midway through the season.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. A “B” represents that player meeting their standard.

Regular Season Stats

• 5.8 points
• 2.9 rebounds
• 0.8 assists
• 47.8% FG
• 23.5% 3PT FG
• 77% FT
• 64 games

Making the jump from a two-way deal to a standard contract doesn’t happen as often as you’d think.

There are 90 NBA two-way slots available, and far more than 90 players who occupy those positions throughout the season. Since these are non-guaranteed deals, teams are pretty quick to cut and sign players to these deals.

This year, only 31 players had their two-way contracts converted to a standard deal for at least the rest of the season. Tomlin was among that group.

Tomlin’s journey to this spot was unconventional to say the least. He didn’t play organized basketball until college, and then played for four teams in five years. Three of those years were spent at smaller juco schools.

He made the Cleveland Charge’s roster heading into the 2024-25 season, but wasn’t a regular rotation at the start of the year. He eventually worked his way into the rotation, then became a starter, and ended the year on a two-way deal.

That progression continued this season. Tomlin worked his way up after the Cavs were decimated with injuries. He made the most of those opportunities as he became a fixture in the rotation throughout the season, and was even a spot starter in three games.

Tomlin’s athleticism and hustle stood out on a team that needed both of those qualities. He was an impactful offensive rebounder and an explosive finisher in the paint when given a runway to do so.

The increased playing time also exposed some of the shortcomings in Tomlin’s game.

First of all, the outside shooting is an issue. Tomlin spent many of his half-court possessions stationed in the corner, but was mostly a non-threat as a shooter. He finished last among qualified forwards in corner three-point percentage as he knocked down just 24% of his corner triples.

This was an issue because Tomlin showed that he doesn’t have the handle or playmaking capabilities to be an on-ball creator. It’s difficult to find a consistent half-court role if you can’t either pass, dribble, shoot, or be a vertical threat at an average to high level.

This left Tomlin as mostly someone who could attack in transition or finish off cuts from the corner. Both are useful, but not ideal as the basis for an offensive package.

Defensively, Tomlin fouled far too much. He had the worst foul percentage among forwards in the league, translating to 4.5 fouls per 36 minutes.

Fouls for a forward usually come from being out of position or selling out for blocks. Tomlin’s issues came from both. He struggled to keep wings in front of him defensively. And even when he was in the right position, he was too susceptible to pump fakes.

Tomlin will need to figure out how to play defense without fouling as much as he did this year if he wants to be a rotation-caliber player. It’s difficult to justify playing someone who fouls this much, who also isn’t a rim deterrent in a meaningful way.

Despite the need for improvement, it’s undeniable that this was a successful year for Tomlin. Every player on a two-way deal in the league’s entire goal for the year is to earn a standard contract. Tomlin did that.

The next step is refining his game on both ends so that he can earn a second NBA deal.

Grade: A

Through four games, the 2026 NBA Finals have been even in just about every way.

The Knicks may lead the series three games to one, but as many pundits and salty NBA fans will tell you, all of these games could’ve gone the opposite way with a few different possessions or calls going differently. Unfortunately for them, you don’t get extra points for almost winning, just ask Kenny Atkinson.

Both teams have made massive runs; they’ve had massive quarters. Even in the Spurs’ case, they’ve had a dominant half of basketball. But it’s all added up to the two teams being close enough that all four games have been decided at the death.

But, while much of the discourse surrounding Game 4 has been focused on the Spurs’ unbelievable 29-point choke, not enough has been about the Knicks playing perhaps the best half of basketball, context included, in franchise history. For some reason, people believe that winning the first quarter matters more than any other. Odd.

So what had to happen for the Knicks to suddenly flip the script and outscore the Spurs 58-30 in the final 24 minutes?

The first thing we have to acknowledge is shooting luck. After the greatest shooting half in NBA Finals history by a Spurs team that has just two above-average three-point shooters in their rotation, they cooled off significantly after halftime, going just 3-for-17. A lot of these looks weren’t totally different than the ones they chucked up in the first half in a persistent heat check, but the attention to detail was also better by the Knicks.

The Spurs went 9-for-13 on wide-open threes and 5-for-12 on open threes in that first half. In the second half, it dropped off to 3-for-10 and 0-for-7. While the drop off from 14-for-25 to 3-for-17 is truly immense, it still averages out at 40.5%, which is well above the postseason average for the Spurs.

So while their shooting drop-off in the second half was a big catalyst behind the comeback, think of it as more of a regression to the mean by a team that doesn’t have the shotmaking to do it for a full 48.

And this is where youthful arrogance sinks in. The heat check bled into the third quarter, where the Spurs repeatedly chucked up shots early in the shot clock, expecting them to go in. When you lead by such a large margin in the second half, you’re fighting the clock as much as the opponent. Refusing to use it on their side enabled the Knicks to get back into it:

Michael Wilbon says the Spurs played sustain stretch of the dumbest basketball he’s ever seen:

“I’m going to give you one stat, they go 14 for 26 on threes in the first half. They built this enormous lead on three point shooting but they have to know they can’t sustain that. And… pic.twitter.com/CCujQjKUba

— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) June 11, 2026

Despite employing a 7’5” alien, the Spurs became the first team in this postseason to go an entire quarter without scoring in the paint in that third quarter, going 0-for-5 in the restricted area. Yes, none of the teams that got wiped off the face of the earth by the Thunder or Knicks in the early rounds even reached this futility.

SPURS 3RD QUARTER LAST NIGHT

0 points in the paint

First team this postseason to go an entire quarter without scoring in the paint

Wemby played all but 58 seconds of the third quarter btw pic.twitter.com/BPGYwEYyLy

— Tom Haberstroh (@tomhaberstroh) June 11, 2026

But that’s enough about the Spurs shooting themselves in the foot. What did the Knicks do to chip away and seize the game at the very end?

They generated better looks on offense, for one. The Knicks had just nine open/wide-open three-point attempts in the first half, making four of them.

In the second half? They went 10-for-18. They never had a problem making their open threes, they just weren’t able to get to that easy offense in the first half.

A large part of that was being able to space the floor with Karl-Anthony Towns being freed from Zach Zarba’s foul trouble prison cell. After playing just nine minutes in a first half that featured brief cameos by Ariel Hukporti and Jeremy Sochan, Towns played 17 minutes in the second half. As such, he was able to finish a game-high +17 in 26 minutes.

While he himself didn’t do too much, he continued a trend that has existed all throughout this series. When he shares the floor with Victor Wembanyama, the Knicks steadily outplay them. When he’s forced to sit while Wemby’s out there, the Spurs dominate.

Wemby + KAT on: Knicks +30 (116:27)
Wemby on, KAT off: Spurs +41 (44:19)
Wemby off: Knicks +19 (31:14)

Plus/minus per minute:
Wemby + KAT on: Knicks +0.26
Wemby on, KAT off: Spurs +0.925
Wemby off: Knicks +0.61

It also doesn’t help ol’ Vic that the Knicks were taking advantage of his wind slowly catching up to him. He’s played a staggering 203 minutes over his last five games, the most by a country mile that he ever has. He’s exceeded his career high in total minutes by over 450 minutes, with, in a total best-case scenario for him, three games to go. That’s 10 additional full games of basketball.

It’s not surprising, then, when the Knicks hunted him on the perimeter in multiple types of action in the second half.

The Knicks had a second half offensive rating of 180 (1.80 ppp) on possessions with Wemby defending in isolation, pick n roll, or close outs

Knicks’ built their historic comeback on Wemby’s defensive weaknesses in drop coverage, over-help and late close outs… pic.twitter.com/QPIY7A2RVg

— Steven Adams Stats (@funakistats) June 11, 2026

The big worry I had watching the first half was allowing the Spurs to coast to a victory and allow their stars to rest, not accruing the extra mileage that has slowly worn them down as games progressed. Fortunately, the Knicks never fully let go of the rope in this tug-of-war battle, dragging their tired bodies over the line for a win.

There were also some bold moves made by Mike Brown with his rotations. Jordan Clarkson didn’t have it. Deuce McBride continued not to have it. Landry Shamet struggled for the second straight game. Needing someone to plug in during the fourth quarter, he elected to play Jose Alvarado with Brunson for the first time in several weeks. It worked like a charm.

NYK scored 1.727 points per possession with these two on the court in G4.

Alvarado just kept screening and moving when Wemby was "guarding" him in the 4Q. https://t.co/h8Ugh7wx2zpic.twitter.com/hD1htJggyx

— Caitlin Cooper (@C2_Cooper) June 11, 2026

The Knicks’ best offense has been when they use off-ball movement, spacing, and real ball movement to put the Spurs into the blender. This disrupts their strategy of playing Wemby as a free safety in the paint and allows them to create quality looks on possession after possession.

What you saw in the second half wasn’t just a young team fundamentally failing in terms of execution for an entire half, but it was a perfect 24 minutes for the team that had to climb out of an impossible deficit.

The inexperience showed one more time in a big way on the final possessions. The Spurs had no idea how to defend the Knicks’ final possession, and you could see it happening in real time.

Unreleased footage that shows the Spurs in utter confusion coming out of the timeout before the OG tip in. MUST watch, sound up. Link to full breakdown below 👇🏀 pic.twitter.com/E7tz0st2LO

— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) June 13, 2026

Through four games, the Spurs have not been the better team, because this kind of stuff is what goes into what decides which team is better or not. Just because one team has the flashier stars, the better personalities, the generational talents gifted to them by Adam Silver and the lottery gods, doesn’t mean they should be ordained without having to play the games.

With Game 5 coming later today, David will have a chance to take Goliath off life support.

How do you recover after one of the worst losses in NBA history? The San Antonio Spurs are going to have to figure out the answer to that question quickly in Game Five of the NBA Finals, or their season will be over.

After blowing a 29-point lead in Game Four, the Spurs are back in San Antonio down 3-1. The Spurs are 4-0 in elimination/series-clinching games this postseason, but are 0-2 on their home court in the Finals. With rumors of New York Knicks’ fans flooding the Frost Bank Center, the Spurs may not be facing such a friendly home crowd. It’s just another hurdle for this young team that has struggled to rise to the moment in this series.

Game Five will be a real test of who the Spurs are. Will they fold after the embarrassment of Game Four? Will Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox come out swinging, looking to make up for crucial mistakes in the game prior? So far this postseason, when San Antonio found itself with its back against the wall, the team has typically responded.

On the flip side, the Knicks are hungrier than ever. A championship is within their grasp, and they have to feel like anything is possible after their miraculous comeback at Madison Square Garden. Despite the 3-1 lead, these Finals have been extremely close. The Spurs need to bring the same level of desperation to survive as the Knicks have to crown themselves the champions. If they don’t, they’ll likely see an opposing team lift the Larry O’Brien trophy on their home court for the first time in franchise history.

San Antonio Spurs (1-3) vs. New York Knicks (3-1)

June 13th, 2026 | 7:30 PM CT

Watch: ABC / ESPN | Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)

Spurs Injuries: Luke Kornet – Questionable (illness)

Knicks Injuries: No injuries to report.

What to watch for:

Wembanyama’s response

These Finals will forever be etched into Wembanyama’s legacy. He’s had moments of brilliance followed by devastating mistakes. The pass off of Stephon Castle’s back in Game Two and the crucial missed free throws in Game Four may haunt him for a while. He will catch a lot of flak for his “arrogant” demeanor on and off the floor, especially if San Antonio loses dramatically in Game Five. Wembanyama has to lead the way for the Spurs at home. It starts by setting the tone at the basket. He’s thrived when San Antonio has gotten him the ball around the rim. He has to live in the paint against New York for the rest of the offense to shine.

These are the moments where the true greats step up. If Wembanyama wants to be considered one of them, he has to play great and lead the team to victory.

Attacking the basket

The Spurs got away from what made them great in the second half of Game Four. They started playing around the perimeter and didn’t attack the basket with the same force they did in the first half. It gave the Knicks an opening, and they seized it. San Antonio’s aggression getting downhill could very well decide this series. When they play fast and put pressure on the rim, New York has a hard time stopping them. It’s the settling on offense that has gotten them in trouble.

Backup center

Luke Kornet is questionable in Game Five due to illness. If he can’t suit up, the Spurs are in a tough position at backup center. Wembanyama has already looked exhausted playing over 40 minutes a night. Without Kornet, he will likely have to take on a similar minute load. San Antonio’s best option may be to play Carter Bryant as a small-ball center, but he has also looked outmatched in this series. Mitch Johnson may need to get creative to find a solution that gives Wembanyama a breather without leading to massive Knicks runs.

SAN ANTONIO — OG Anunoby is having a moment, birthed from a moment that will outlive us all. The national recognition is long overdue for the Knicks’ best two-way player, who could soon be named the NBA Finals MVP.

But Jalen Brunson remains the leader in the clubhouse for the award, uniquely built to crush whatever will the Spurs have left, looking to lead the Knicks to their first title in 53 years, eight years after leaving San Antonio with his second national championship.

“I think the one thing that stays constant is I’ve always told myself, and always been taught by my parents, ‘Never be afraid to fail,’” Brunson said Friday at Frost Bank Center. “You put yourself in those positions in the summertime when you’re envisioning what’s going on the court, when you’re by yourself on the court …

“When those opportunities come about, you’re not afraid of the moment because you worked hard enough to where if you do fail, you’re going to learn anyway. You put the confidence you have in everything you do when the lights aren’t on, when no one’s watching.”

Brunson is 48 minutes from forever, coming off a brilliant effort in the record-setting 29-point Game 4 comeback, when he had 36 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals, including a key 3-pointer over Victor Wembanyama — bringing the Knicks within one with 2:21 remaining — and the go-ahead shot to put the Knicks in front for the first time with 1:22 left.

Brunson has played the hero multiple times this series — scoring 13 fourth-quarter points in Game 1, then recording a steal in between his game-tying and game-winning shots in Game 2 — but he has been uncharacteristically inefficient, struggling with the speed and physicality of a defense hellbent on bumping and blitzing him at every opportunity.

Through three games, Brunson scored 82 points on 81 shots, had as many turnovers as assists (13) and recorded a minus-13 rating. In Game 4, he looked most comfortable, getting space, and getting to his spots, shooting 12-for-25 and becoming the first Knick to record three 30-point games in a single NBA Finals.

“Whenever you win or lose a game, that night, you’re going to think about it, think about the things you’ve done well or what you did wrong, [but] I’ve always told myself when you wake up the next day, it’s time to turn the page,” Brunson said. “Yes, we won [Game 4], but we still have a lot of work to do. We have a lot to learn. We didn’t play our best basketball. We still have a lot to revisit to make sure that we don’t really put ourselves in that position again.

“We still have to continue to have the belief that we’ve had.”

Since Brunson’s 40-point masterpiece in the first round in Detroit last year — capped with his series-ending 3-pointer in the final seconds — the Knicks haven’t needed his heroics in clinching opportunities. 

They beat the Celtics by 38 to finish last year’s second-round upset. This postseason run has seen the Knicks win by 51 in Atlanta, by 30 in Philadelphia and by 37 in Cleveland. 

Each game of the NBA Finals has been decided in the final minute.

Enter Captain Clutch, the former second-round pick, the supposedly undersized and overpaid free-agent signing, who has become the city’s most beloved athlete — and has one more hill to climb.

“I think I’ve been able to understand what a unique opportunity this is,” Brunson said. “When you’re doing the things that help you prepare for a game, prepare for moments, put yourself in routines that you’ve done your whole career, your whole life, when it comes game time, you’re ready to go because you put yourself, you put your mind in a position to be ready.”

Jayson Tatum is enjoying watching “good basketball” during his offseason.

The Celtics superstar watched the Knicks’ “pretty special” comeback win in Game 4 of the NBA Finals – but he’s not directly supporting either team.

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum on watching the Knicks in the NBA Finals:

"I'm not rooting for anybody, I'm also not rooting against anybody. I think it does help that I've won a championships already, so helps me sleep a little better at night." pic.twitter.com/7l0A2VnMRK

— Front Office Sports News (@FOS_News_) June 11, 2026

“I’m not rooting for anybody, I’m also not rooting against anybody,” Tatum told Front Office Sports Thursday about the series, which the Knicks now lead 3-1.

After trailing by 29 points on Wednesday, New York staged a historic rally to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, capped off by OG Anunoby’s tip-in with one second left in regulation.

The Knicks have been a thorn in Tatum’s side recently, as New York eliminated his Celtics in a thrilling six-game Eastern Conference Semifinals last season.

The series also carried heartbreak for the six-time All-Star, who suffered a torn right Achilles tendon in Game 4, ending his season and keeping him out for a significant portion of the 2025-26 campaign.

The 28-year-old, who returned for 16 regular-season games this season, said his prior success makes watching the Finals an easier pill to swallow.

Tatum helped lead the Celtics to the franchise’s NBA record 18th championship against the Mavericks in 2024.

“I think it does help that I’ve won a championship already,” Tatum added. “So it helps me sleep a little better at night. I just enjoy watching good basketball games.”

A calf injury kept Tatum out of the Celtics’ Game 7 matchup against the Sixers, which Boston lost 109-100 – which denied him an opportunity for an Eastern Conference Semifinals rematch against New York.

SAN ANTONIO — Mike Brown has never won a championship as a head coach. Before this spring, he hadn’t won a playoff series in the role since 2012.

But he has been part of two dynasties, collecting one ring with Tim Duncan’s Spurs, three with Stephen Curry’s Warriors and the memories of the supporting casts that helped immortalize those stars.

“I’ve been fortunate, blessed, lucky to be a part of some good coaching staffs and be with some great coaches, Steve Kerr, Gregg Popovich, they were guys that went deep into their bench,” Brown said earlier in the postseason. “You keep guys engaged by doing that, and you do develop not just a bench but the team, as well, because guys get used to playing with other guys … 

“I’ve seen it work in the past, and that’s kind of what I thought I wanted to do here.”

Brown’s trust in his reserves ranks among the most significant changes from his predecessor, Tom Thibodeau. 

But who will the Knicks coach be able to count on in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, with a chance to win the team’s first title since 1973?

Mitchell Robinson went 1-for-5 on shots at the rim in Game 4 and is shooting 30.8 percent on free throws. Landry Shamet has followed the best eight-game 3-point shooting stretch (67.6 percent) in postseason history by making 1-of-11 shots in the past two games. Jordan Clarkson had 10 points in Game 3, but has two points in the other three games combined. Miles McBride’s “Deuuuuuuce” chants continue to end with disappointment, as he’s shot 4-for-20, with 2.8 points per game, in the series.

“I’m always going to stay confident, knowing I can impact the game in a lot of different ways,” McBride said Friday. “I’m going to make shots. I’m never worried about that. … Anybody is capable of it, 1 through 15 on this team. We’re pushing each other to be better. That’s how our team has been. We’re motivators. We want to uplift everybody. I think having a team like that, you can do a lot of great things.”

Jose Alvarado was the latest example, recording eight points, three assists and two rebounds in the final 10 minutes of their miraculous Game 4 win.

But who will Brown turn to next?

“This bench is deep and he trusts everybody,” Alvarado said. “Some days it’s my day, some days it’s somebody else’s day. … These are the times and moments you wait for.”

SAN ANTONIO — Shaquille O’Neal won four championships and an MVP Award over his 19 seasons in the NBA, and has since studied it closely as an analyst. 

So whom would he select if he were a general manager and could choose any player — past or present — with the No. 1 pick? 

“Me,” O’Neal told The Post. 

Excluding himself? 

“I’d probably go with [LeBron James] because Bron — and I know this is a Kobe [Bryant] comparison — Bron had it when he came in,” O’Neal told The Post. “It took Kobe two or three years to get it. Bron had it when he came in, so I’d probably go with Bron.”

You know who else has it too? 

Victor Wembanyama, who has reached the NBA Finals in his third season, faster than many of the all-time greats, including James, Bryant and Michael Jordan. 

This postseason Wembanyama has seemingly quieted any talk about who’s the next face of the league, if he hasn’t already snatched that ceremonial title from James, who has held it for two decades. 

Or has he?

“You have to take it,” O’Neal told The Post. “If he wins a championship, yes. If [Jalen] Brunson wins a championship, it’ll be Brunson. Face of the league ain’t something you pass on. You’ve got to go take it.”

After blowing a 29-point lead to the Knicks in a 107-106 loss in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, the Spurs trail the series, 3-1. 

Wembanyama is averaging 27.8 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 3.2 blocks over the past four games. Brunson is averaging 29.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, five assists and two steals. 

Brunson has skyrocketed into the national consciousness this postseason after barely being a blip on the radar. 

Knicks coach Mike Brown hopes the world will now see what New York has known. 

“He definitely has not — or did not — get the attention that he deserved during the regular season,” Brown said. “I think he’s a top-three MVP candidate. And when it comes down to those things, his name wasn’t mentioned much.”

Meanwhile, Wembanyama won Defensive Player of the Year and finished third in MVP voting. 

Regardless of whether this is Wembanyama’s time to claim the league’s ultimate throne, there’s no doubt that the 22-year-old will become an all-time great if he stays healthy. 

He was the most highly touted prospect since James entered the league in 2003, and he has already blown past his expectations. He’s able to patrol the paint with his size and agility, while also being able to shoot from anywhere on the court. He’s unlike anyone the league has seen. 

He’s an alien. 

So, how would he have matched up against The Big Aristotle?

“Oh, stop it,” O’Neal told The Post, flashing a smile. “Let’s talk desserts. He’s too light in the cakes for me. Stop it. But I’m not known for defense, so he probably would’ve scored a few points also. There’s no guarding me one-on-one, so you can’t ask me that question. He’s a great player. This is his time now. This is not about me.”

O’Neal has been closely watching the NBA Finals as an analyst for ABC/ESPN, alongside Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson. 

He finds this series particularly exciting because there’s so much emphasis on the teams’ big men. 

“I love [Wembanyama] and I love KAT [Karl-Anthony Towns], so for me this is really good,” O’Neal told The Post. “Two big men battling it out. Let the best big man win. Usually in the Finals it’s all about guards. But these Finals are about two big men, so I have an affinity, a love, for both of them. So whoever wins, I’m happy for them both.”

Towns has turned heads for his great defense on Wembanyama, especially in Game 1 and the first half of Game 2. He has made a huge impact on both ends of the court for the Knicks, who are one win away from their first championship since 1973. 

As for Wembanyama, he has astounded the world with his greatness during his first postseason run, such as when he had a 41-point, 24-rebound and 3-block performance to stun the Thunder in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. 

But he has also shown his inexperience at times, such as when he threw the ball off of Stephon Castle’s back with 12.7 seconds left in the Spurs’ 105-104 loss in Game 2 of the Finals.

Now comes his biggest test yet. 

The Spurs are against the wall. After being on the wrong side of the biggest comeback in Finals history in Game 4, Wembanyama said the Spurs will either wave the white flag or come together stronger than ever. 

Apparently, he now has his answer. 

“Everybody thinks, everybody knows, we’re going to do it,” Wembanyama said at Spurs practice Friday. 

Regardless of the outcome of the Finals, Wembanyama has undoubtedly lived up to the hype. He carried the Spurs past the reigning champion Thunder in the Western Conference finals, outplaying two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. And he has been a force in his debut on the championship stage. 

But, according to O’Neal, when it comes to becoming the next face of the league, nothing is promised. 

O’Neal would still choose James to build a team around. 

And who’s next in line is far from predetermined.

SAN ANTONIO — It’s right there. 

It’s right freakin’ there. 

The Knicks’ first championship since 1973 — and only third in franchise history — is right there. Etching their place in New York legend is right there. Glory is right there. 

The Knicks just have to reach out and grab it. 

They carry their 3-1 NBA Finals lead into Game 5 at the Frost Bank Center for Game 5 on Saturday, just one step away from immortality. 

“The biggest thing is everybody has to stay present,” coach Mike Brown said on Friday. “You have to be present. You can’t think about the outcome. It’s about the process, the next play, the next play, the next play. 

“Sometimes you can think about the process, and it not work out. But when you’re playing against other great teams especially, that’s how you have to take it because anybody’s mind can start wandering when you think about the outcome.” 

The Knicks this postseason have bludgeoned their opponents in closeout games. Between Game 6 against the Hawks in the first round, Game 4 against the 76ers in the second round and Game 4 against the Cavaliers in the conference finals, the Knicks won by a combined 118 points. 

“I’ve said this multiple times, the hardest game to win is the one that ends someone’s season,” Karl-Anthony Towns said. “So we’ve got to be our best version tomorrow.” 

Despite Towns’ sentiment, the Knicks have made closeout games look like their easiest, not their hardest games. By the end of the first three rounds, they completely sucked the soul out of their opponents and left them with little will to keep competing. They left no doubt. 

There is one characteristic that has given them that ability. 

“Their level of maturity,” Brown said. “Obviously, we have some veteran guys on the team. But you can be a veteran and still have a little bit of immaturity about you, as we all know. From top to bottom, this group is pretty mature. That rubs off on the rest of the group. It makes my job easier. 

“We’ve been preaching all year that it’s about the next possession, the next possession, the next possession. We understand any time you try to play a closeout game, the level of desperation for your opponents increases, the level of desperation for the fans of your opponents is increased. You have to bring your best effort.”

That sense of desperation should be natural to the Spurs, who are trying to save their title hopes. But, when up 3-1 in the series, it would be natural for the Knicks to not have that same level of desperation, particularly after such an emotional, thrilling and historic comeback win in Game 4. 

“I think whenever you win or lose a game, that night you’re going to think about it, think about the things you’ve done well or what you did wrong,” Jalen Brunson said. “I’ve always told myself when you wake up the next day, it’s time to turn the page. Yes, we won, but we still have a lot of work to do. We have a lot to learn. We didn’t play our best basketball. We still have a lot to revisit to make sure that we don’t really put ourselves in that position again. 

“But honestly, we still have to continue to have the belief that we’ve had. It’s really important from that aspect.”

Playing with desperation first emerged when they trailed 2-1 in the first round. It carried them throughout their 13-game winning streak. 

The Spurs, at least publicly, are steadfast that they have not yet lost their confidence like the Knicks’ previous three opponents did. Victor Wembanyama said “everybody” on the team knows they will — not can — come back in the series. Stephon Castle expects to make history. 

And this series hasn’t exactly been straightforward — the Knicks have trailed by double-digits all four games and by as much as 29 in Game 4. All of the first four games of the series have been within four points in the final minute of regulation, the first time that’s happened in the Finals since 1973, when the Knicks beat the Lakers. 

The series has been closer than perhaps the 3-1 lead indicates. 

“We spoke about it multiple times,” Towns said. “We’ve got to approach every game like it’s 0-0. We’ve got to have that kind of desperation that it is to win Game 1 of a playoff series. We’ve got to go in there with the understanding of no comfortability, just really be desperate, execute at a high level. Gameplan discipline has to be at a high level.”

Elation awaits on the other side of desperation. 

SAN ANTONIO — By the time he checked his phone Wednesday night, OG Anunoby had too many text messages to count. 

His game-winning tip-in with 1.2 seconds left created a massive celebration inside Madison Square Garden and went viral immediately.

Among those who reached out were several former teammates with the Raptors. Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal Named June 11 “OG Anunoby Appreciation Day.”

“It’s really cool,” Anunoby said on Friday inside Frost Bank Arena, as the Knicks prepared for Saturday night’s Game 5. “Just everyone has been telling me how much it means, and obviously I can see how much it means. It’s just really cool to be a part of it, and I’m very grateful.”

The shot, which capped an NBA Finals-record comeback for the Knicks from 29 points down in the third quarter, is already being talked about as one of the great moments in New York sports history.

It’s up there with the David Tyree’s helmet catch in Super Bowl XLII, Don Larsen’s perfect game in the World Series, Rangers captain Mark Messier making good on his prediction in the 1994 Eastern Conference finals with a hat trick, and the Mets’ 1986 World Series comeback in Game 6, among others. 

“I tried to explain it to him, but you know OG barely gives you any reaction,” Karl-Anthony Towns said jokingly. “So I don’t know if he’s understanding it or not. Like you said, it’s a great moment. It’s one of the best sports moments in New York history. But we’ve got to solidify it with one more win.”

Towns called Anunoby’s flying tip-in, the “Right Hand of God,” after Game 4. On Friday, a reporter showed Anunoby a photo of his play next to the original “Hand of God,” Diego Maradona’s controversial goal in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals for Argentina in which he used his left hand to score.

The referees didn’t see him using his hand, and afterwards, Maradona said it was “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the Hand of God.”

“I mean, it’s iconic,” Anunoby said. 

This isn’t Anunoby’s first trip to the Finals. Seven years ago, he got there with the Raptors, but was unable to play due to an emergency appendectomy. He’s making an impact this time on the court. 

In four games against the Spurs, he is averaging 23.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and shooting an absurd 55.6 percent from 3-point range.

In Game 4, he poured in 33 points and shot 7-of-9 from 3-point range, keying the stunning comeback. If the Knicks win the series, he is a leading candidate to be the series MVP. 

“You can’t spell God without OG,” Towns joked. 

The Knicks’ epic Game 4 comeback did monster viewership numbers for ABC.

Wednesday’s thriller against the Spurs averaged 20.9 million viewers, making it the most-watched NBA Finals Game 4 since 1998 — when Michael Jordan’s Bulls took on the Jazz with Karl Malone and John Stockton —  and the most-watched Game 4 ever on ABC, according to numbers released by Nielsen on Friday.

And it hasn’t been just a one-game thing.

Through four games, the Knicks-Spurs series is averaging 19.6 million viewers, up 116 percent from last year and good for the most-watched NBA Finals since 1998 and the largest Finals audience ever on ABC/ESPN.

Game 4 was also a hit online. 

The NBA is calling the contest “the most-viral NBA game ever on social media” by reportedly “generating 3 billion views and counting.”

The latest numbers come after Monday’s Game 3 broadcast between the Knicks and the Spurs became the most-watched NBA Finals Game 3 in nearly three decades with 23.8 million people tuning in, and peaking at 26.3 million late in the fourth quarter.

Games 1 and 2 were the same story, having at the time been the most-watched NBA Finals games since Games 6 and 7 of the Raptors-Warriors Finals in 2019 when Kawhi Leonard led Toronto to the title against a injury-riddled Golden State team. 

The viewership surge is being driven by the rare combination of the Knicks’ first Finals appearance since 1999, a starving, massive New York market, Victor Wembanyama’s arrival on basketball’s biggest stage and multiple dramatic finishes.

With the Knicks one win away from their first NBA title since 1973, the league could be staring at an even bigger number Saturday night in San Antonio.