The New York Knicks, led by Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, will face off against Victor Wembanyama’s San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals, which tip off on Wednesday night.
The Knicks are in the midst of one of the best playoff runs in history, as they have won 11 straight games and boast this postseason’s No. 1-ranked offense (scoring 121.2 points per 100 possessions) and No. 1-ranked defense (allowing 101.7 points per 100 possessions).
Now, the Knicks will face a completely different animal in Wembanyama and the Spurs.
Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns Give Victor Wembanyama His Flowers
Wembanyama helped lead the Spurs to an epic Game 7 victory over the defending-champion Oklahoma City Thunder. The Spurs won the deciding game on the road with Wembanyama totaling 22 points and 7 rebounds. This postseason, Wemby is averaging 23.2 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.5 blocks, 2.7 assists, and 1.8 3s, while shooting 51.0% from the field, 37% from 3, and 87.0% from the free-throw line.
During Tuesday’s NBA Finals media day, Brunson, Towns, and OG Anunoby talked about Wembanyama’s game.
“Watching him as a player, it’s pretty unbelievable,” Brunson said of Wembanyama. “The things he’s able to do on both sides of the ball, people have never really seen before, for a person of his size. It’s incredible to watch from a player’s perspective.”
Towns agreed.
“Obviously he’s a special talent, and the NBA is blessed to have him and for him to be able to showcase his talent to the world,” Towns said. “For us, we just have to have discipline in our game-plan and execute at a high level.”
Anunoby and Brunson stressed that you have to be aware of Wembanyama at all times.
“He’s pretty unique… Just being aware of where he’s at all over the floor,” Anunoby said. “He can do everything. Super talented. Just being aware of him at all times, trying to make it as difficult as possible.”
“As an opposing player, it’s something you constantly have to be on watch for,” Brunson added. “You just never know the things that he’s capable of doing. That’s why our game-planning discipline, our attention to details are so important when it comes to playing because he’s pretty incredible.”
Obviously, that’s easier said than done, but the Knicks have made some very good players look very pedestrian this postseason.
Joel Embiid had some success in the three games he played against the Knicks, but overall, it wasn’t enough to win a game against New York. Big men Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley were mostly held in check during the Knicks’ 4-0 sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Handling these skilled big men has to give the some confidence entering the NBA Finals, but nothing compares to facing Wembanyama.
Game 1 tips off on Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. ET and will air on ABC.
