If Game 1 was any indication of what this series will eventually become, the 2026 NBA Finals are going to be absolutely enthralling.
The New York Knicks outlasted the San Antonio Spurs Wednesday, June 3 in a thrilling, back-and-forth 105-95 win to take an early lead in the best-of-7 series.
With 1:50 left to play, Knicks All-Star Jalen Brunson hit a massive 3-pointer that gave New York the lead it would never relinquish and sparked a 11-0 run to close out the game.
Brunson scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Knicks, who have now won 12 consecutive games in the postseason.
And with that, New York is just three wins away from earning its first NBA title in 53 seasons.
Here are live takeaways from Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs:
Although Karl-Anthony Towns scored 18 points and scooped 12 rebounds, his biggest contribution was defensively.
Tasked with being the primary defender against Victor Wembanyama, Towns not only held his own, he guarded him with a physical and disciplined approach.
Wembanyama did finish with 26 points, but he shot just 6-of-21 from the floor, including 2-of-9 from 3-point range. In fact, on attempts when Towns was the closest defender, Wembanyama shot just 2-of-12 from the floor.
Wembanyama never appeared comfortable and made just four shots in the paint. Towns made sure to put his hands and body on Wembanyama just so that he could feel his presence. That often led to Wembanyama backing out of the paint and settling for jumpers. In other cases, it led to wild shots, especially close to the rim.
Jalen Brunson may get all the attention for his 30-point performance, but Towns had the better game, by far.
Let’s first give Jalen Brunson a ton of credit for gritting through a game in which he returned from a first quarter knee injury and then later had his ankle stepped on in the second.
And even though Brunson scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, the scary part for the Spurs is that Brunson didn’t play particularly well — at least not to the level that he’s capable.
It’s a question of efficiency. Brunson shot just 12-of-31 (38.7%) from the floor (though he went 5-of-9 in the fourth quarter). The Spurs have excellent defenders at the guard position, and they crowded the paint any time Brunson crept his way down there.
“I think it starts with my confidence,” Brunson said when asked how he bounced back from three tough quarters. “It comes with my work ethic. I think most importantly, knowing we’re on the road, and knowing my teammates have my back — I think that’s the biggest thing in an environment like this.
“The trust they have in me and the trust I have in them, it got us to this point. I’m very thankful for them every single night we go out there together.”
Despite the shooting struggles, the Knicks still won by 10 points. That should scare San Antonio.
San Antonio didn’t have a particularly good shooting night. It was particularly bad in the second half. The Spurs scored just 48 points after intermission and shot just 2-of-19 (10.5%) from 3-point range in the second half.
At times, it felt like some of those shots were forced and that San Antonio was pressing, although Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said after the game that he thought his team “missed some good shots.”
The Knicks have excellent length and versatility at wing and play excellent perimeter defense. The Spurs didn’t do enough to grind through possessions and work harder for easier looks.
Granted, the Knicks can clog the paint, so it’s easier said than done, but San Antonio could’ve attacked the paint to open up better looks from deep. The Spurs, after all, trailed in points in the paint, 50-42.
“I think there will be some possessions that — again — we could’ve worked the clock more, worked them more defensively,” Johnson said. “I kind of refer to them as ‘just shots.’ Is it a bad shot, a good shot? I don't really know, but it's just a shot.
“We probably could be a little bit more greedy on those possessions to get something better as a group.”
In the first half, the Knicks committed 8 turnovers, which yielded to 12 Spurs points off those giveaways. New York played rushed and tried to match San Antonio’s speed, which was a losing proposition.
In the second half, New York committed just 1 single turnover. This did a couple of things.
For one, it led to better, higher-quality shots. For another, that limited the amount of transition opportunities the Spurs had. To be fair, the Knicks did also do a far better job in the second half about getting back on defense, but New York was much better about playing closer to its identity after intermission: getting to the paint, making extra passes and taking care of the ball.
The Spurs were just four days removed from a very physical seven-game series against the defending champions. They’re a very young team, and this was the first time they were playing for stakes this high.
That all showed up early in Game 1, with the Spurs playing too rushed through their sets, seemingly amped up by the moment. As the first quarter wore on, San Antonio settled in extremely well and used its defense to generate turnovers and easier offense.
San Antonio would stay competitive throughout the game, which featured runs from both teams. But the Knicks closed the game on a 11-0 run, and the Spurs did not score a single point in the final 2:16 of the game.
It became clear very early in Game 1 that Wembanyama intended to set the tone for San Antonio. Whether he was handling the ball and bringing it up the floor or setting screens in offensive actions, Wembanyama was active, clearly trying to lead by example.
He made two of his first four shots and finished the first quarter with 5 points, but San Antonio tends to feed off of Wembanyama’s energy. This was a decent start for the 22 year old.
It wouldn’t last long. Wembanyama labored through a rough, 28.6% shooting night, and the Spurs will need to figure out ways to get easier offense for him as the series goes on. Some of that can be schemed. Whether San Antonio opts to use Wembanyama more as a screener in pick-and-rolls — an action that yielded a lot of success in the Western Conference finals against the Thunder — or have him initiate offense, the Spurs will have a difficult time winning this series if Wembanyama struggles to impact offense.
That’s only compounded further if San Antonio’s perimeter shots aren’t falling.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA Finals Game 1 analysis, takeaways as Knicks top Spurs in opener
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