NBA Finals Game 1 Breakdown: Knicks take the lead in San Antonio
- Stefanos Avraamidis
- Jun 4
- 2 min read
The New York Knicks take the lead in the Game 1 of the NBA Finals versus the San Antonio Spurs, beating Spurs' home-court advantage (SAS-NYK: 0-1). The rematch of the 1999 NBA Finals is well underway with Knicks making the first move towards the title. Jalen Brunson with 13 points in the 4th qtr and a total of 30 points set the tone for the Knicks, who also saw Karl Anthony Towns putting up 18 points, 12 rebounds and +14 while on the floor, and Josh Hart striving on the defensive end with 15 rebounds and 5 stocks (4 steals and 1 block).
For the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama led the scorers with 26 points and 12 rebounds, though his shot was unusually off as he had 6-of-21 FG (29%), demonstrating the Knicks' decisive and tough defense. Stephon Castle followed with 17 points and 8 rebounds. Notable performances for the Spurs include Julian Champagnie with 16 points and 10 rebounds and Dylan Harper with 16 points and 8 rebounds.
NBA Finals Game 1 Biggest Takeaways:
The Knicks didn't seem to be overwhelmed by the atmosphere at Frost Bank Center, neither by Wembanyama's presence. They managed to shut down Spurs' 3-pt shot, and Jalen Brunson took over in the 4th to ice the game. Even if the Spurs have the league's most fearless defender in Wembanyama, the Knicks took control of the paint with 50-42 in that area. In addition, they stopped Wembanyama forcing him to attempt bad shots and as it appears the Spurs didn't have a second answer as nobody stepped up.
Stat to watch:
Too-hard-to-die Knicks pulled their seventh double-digit comeback in the second half over the past two postseasons, by far the most in the NBA. No other team has more than three over that span. -- ESPN Research
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