Knicks stun Spurs and complete biggest comeback in NBA Finals history
NEW YORK -— OG Anunoby’s tip-in off Jalen Brunson's missed three-pointer with 1.2 seconds left completed the largest comeback in NBA Finals history as the New York Knicks bolted back from a 29-point deficit to win Game 4 against the San Antonio Spurs, bringing them one step closer to their first championship since 1973.
The Knicks' 107-106 victory marked biggest comeback in NBA Finals history, surpassing the 24-point lead the Los Angeles Lakers blew in Game 4 of the 2008 Finals against the Boston Celtics.
Jalen Brunson scored 36 points, including a 3-pointer with 2:21 left that brought the Knicks within one, and his five-foot floater in the lane a minute later gave them a 105-104 lead. Stephon Castle’s two free throws gave the Spurs their last lead at 106-105 with 30.3 seconds before Anunoby sent Madison Square Garden into a frenzy. The Spurs' last shot at the buzzer missed and the historic rally was complete with the crowd still celebrating in the arena more than 30 minutes after the game ended.
"It's unbelievable," Knicks coach Mike Brown said about Anunoby's game winner. "You know, the tip, how he had to control it and tip it in, and then like I said, you know, that has to be the most iconic shot in the history of New York basketball. ... It was just unbelievable."
Anunoby hit seven three-pointers and scored 33 points for New York, and Karl Anthony Towns, who overcame early foul trouble, had 13 points and 10 rebounds.
As far as momentum swings are concerned, the Knicks now find themselves with three chances to wrap up that elusive championship and break a five-decade championship drought. Game 5 is Saturday night in San Antonio.
Wembanyama had 24 points and 13 rebounds, and Dylan Harper added 21 off the bench, but it wasn’t enough as the Spurs melted under a combination of poor shooting and the Knicks’ refusal to quit.
San Antonio blew an 81-59 third-quarter lead, getting outscored 32-16 in the fourth quarter, part of a woeful 30-point second half.
But the first half was an entirely different story.
For the fourth straight game, the Knicks found themselves down digits in the first quarter, and by the time the first 12 minutes ended, they faced an almost insurmountable 19-point deficit. The lead ballooned to as many as 29 points, and the thought was that the competitive aspect of this game was long gone by the time the Wu-Tang Clan performed at halftime.
The Spurs shot 60 percent in the first half on the way to a 76-44 lead at the break, accounting for the largest halftime lead by a road team in NBA Finals history. The 14 made three-pointers in the first half, also set a Finals record. The Knicks had 15 field goals total in the first 24 minutes.
It was obvious that the game plan on Wednesday night by Knicks coach Mike Brown was to rough up Wembanyama after Game 3’s officials missed several calls that could have gone against the Defensive Player of the Year. Not only did that plan fail, but the tide quickly shifted under a barrage of three-point shooting by the Spurs, while every other type of shot also seemed to swish through the net.
But the second half was a completely different story for both teams.
Improbably, the Spurs missed 31 of their 39 second-half field goal attempts and 14 of their 17 3-point attempts. They shot just 20.5% from the floor as they watched the Knicks first cut their lead to under 20, then to under 10, then to under 5 points before the Knicks finally completed what seemed an unthinkable comeback.
After the game, the Spurs tried to comprehend what had just unfolded, but players expressed confidence that they were still firmly in the Finals, headed back to San Antonio.
"It hurts. We gave this one up. It hurts. I think it hurts everybody, from players to staff," forward Keldon Johnson, the 2026 NBA Sixth Man of the Year winner, said after the game. "We put a lot into it. As much as it hurts, we're still playing.
"We have 48, 72 hours to get back at it, and I wouldn't want to be with any other guys. I feel like we have a special group. We're back at it, and we believe we can get it done. That's not going to change regardless."
Three days off before the next game is an NBA entirely, and the young, talented Spurs need to do everything they can to pick themselves up from this embarrassing meltdown. For New York, the adjustments are simple, and they can do themselves a big favor by avoiding slow starts to mitigate everything else that went wrong in Game 4, particularly poor shot selection and worrying about things beyond their control.