Published
Jun 12, 2026 at 03:07 PM EDT
Hug a San Antonio Spurs fan, if you know one.
The Spurs were supposed to host the New York Knicks for Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals on Saturday having taken back momentum by winning two straight games at Madison Square Garden to even the series. It looked predestined when the Spurs held a 27-point halftime lead — and led by as many as 29 points — in Game 4 on Wednesday night.
But the Knicks pulled off the biggest comeback in NBA Finals history to claim a 3-1 series lead instead — leading to pure euphoria in New York and utter devastation in San Antonio.
The image of OG Anunoby soaring in untouched and tipping in the game winner with 1.2 seconds left will haunt Spurs fans forever. Somehow, diving into the numbers makes it all the more heartbreaking.
Kevin Wildes relayed on FS1’s “First Things First” that the Spurs have led for 133 total minutes in this series — the most minutes led for any team down 3-1 in NBA Finals history and the third-most for a team down 3-1 in any playoff series. San Antonio has also held a double-digit lead and a lead in the last two minutes in each of the first four games.
According to “First Things First,” the Spurs are now on the losing end of two of the five biggest blown second-half leads in NBA Finals history. Relinquishing a 29-point lead to the Knicks in Game 4 ranks first. The Spurs losing a 14-point third-quarter lead in Game 1 ranks fifth.
The silver lining is that these numbers could indicate that the Spurs have as good a shot as any team to become the second-ever team to come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the Finals. Everyone in the Spurs locker room should certainly believe that. They’ve been right there in every game.
But the more realistic view is that the Knicks are on an all-time heater and, with a heavy experience edge over San Antonio, will inevitably win one of the next three games.
