NBA Daily Digest: Knicks One Win From 1973, Wemby on Suspension Watch — Game 5 Saturday in San Antonio
The Knicks lead the 2026 NBA Finals 3-1 after completing the largest comeback in Finals history in Game 4. Game 5 is Saturday in San Antonio (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC). Victor Wembanyama sits one flagrant foul away from an automatic suspension, and the Spurs have now blown five double-digit playoff leads — an unwanted postseason record.
The Knicks are one win away from their first NBA championship since 1973. After completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, New York leads the 2026 NBA Finals 3-1, with Game 5 set for Saturday in San Antonio — 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
What happened in Game 4
With 9:27 remaining in the third quarter, the Knicks trailed San Antonio by 29 points. That scoreline — roughly 80-51 at its worst — had no historical precedent as a Finals comeback win. Four previous teams had fallen down 20-plus in the fourth quarter of a Finals game; all four lost.
The Knicks made it 5-for-751.
Jalen Brunson, PG, poured in 36 points and 7 assists on the night. 2 OG Anunoby tipped in a missed Brunson floater with 1.2 seconds left — the play that ended it, 107-106. Victor Wembanyama had 24 points and 13 rebounds for San Antonio despite shooting 9-for-25 from the field and missing two critical free throws late.
The series is now at MSG advantage: 3-1 Knicks. 1
Wembanyama's suspension clock
The most concrete tactical issue heading into Saturday is Wembanyama's flagrant foul count.
In the third quarter of Game 4, he hit Karl-Anthony Towns, C, with a right elbow to the chin. Officials reviewed it and upgraded the call to a Flagrant 1. That is his third flagrant foul point in this postseason; a fourth results in an automatic one-game suspension. 3
It was not his first disciplinary incident. Earlier in the playoffs he took a second flagrant foul — which carries an automatic suspension — against Minnesota. In Game 3 of this series, his shove of Brunson drew a fine but no retroactive suspension.
Asked directly about how the threat of a fourth flag would change his game, Wembanyama said: "Of course I'm gonna be a little more careful, but it's not gonna change much."
That answer lands somewhere between confidence and defiance. Whether he can maintain his defensive aggression — rim presence, shot-blocking, physical paint coverage — without picking up that fourth infraction is the single most game-shaping variable Saturday. If he is suspended, San Antonio's entire defensive identity collapses.
The Spurs' five-blown-leads problem
San Antonio held a 29-point advantage in Game 4. That collapse contributed to an unwanted piece of franchise history.
The Spurs have now blown five double-digit leads in this postseason, tying the record in the play-by-play era for the most such collapses in a single playoff year. The last team to reach that mark was the 2003 San Antonio Spurs — who went on to win the championship. 4
The patterns in those losses share a thread: late defensive breakdowns in transition, a drop in physicality after holding big advantages, and an inability to close when New York goes on a run. Those exact issues — not just the specific turnovers or shot misses — need to be corrected before Saturday.
For coaching staff purposes, fixing transition defense is partially schema and partly personnel stamina. De'Aaron Fox, PG, played through the second half of the series with a leg issue. If he is not fully functional, San Antonio's primary ball-handler and the player most capable of triggering the offense in broken situations becomes compromised. Game 5 is, in that sense, a fitness report as much as a tactical battle.
The Spurs' one reason for optimism: Dylan Harper
Buried under the Game 4 narrative is a data point San Antonio fans need to hold onto: Dylan Harper, SG, 20 years and 100 days old, came off the bench and put up 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and a team-best +12 in 32 minutes. That made him the youngest player in NBA Finals history to score 20-plus points in a game. 5
Harper was the second overall pick in the 2025 draft. His ability to create in the mid-range and get to the rim without the ball presents a real matchup issue for Knicks defenders, who tend to shade toward Wembanyama coverage. If the Spurs are going to force a Game 6, Harper needs somewhere between 20 and 25 minutes of real offense on Saturday.
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Three things to watch in Game 5
| Factor | What the Knicks need | What the Spurs need |
|---|---|---|
| Wembanyama fouls | Probe early, attack the paint, force difficult decisions | Wemby to stay aggressive without crossing the line |
| Transition defense | Run off turnovers as they did in Game 4 | Limit live-ball transitions; get back in organized sets |
| Fox health and creation | Contain Fox in pick-and-roll coverage | Fox at full speed to destabilize Knicks ball pressure |
The path to Game 6
San Antonio must play close to a flawless 48 minutes to extend this series. They need Wembanyama at full defensive capability, Fox healthy enough to control pace, and Harper and Stephon Castle, PG, to stay efficient offensively. They also need to protect double-digit leads, which they have not done five times this postseason.
The Knicks, coming off an emotionally exhausting comeback win, face a different challenge: translating peak emotional intensity from Game 4 into organized, disciplined execution on an opponent's floor. Teams that win on historic circumstances sometimes carry the energy into the next game; sometimes they deflate.
For New York, the 1973 championship ended 53 years ago. The franchise has not come this close since. Whether they close Saturday night or allow San Antonio to drag this back to MSG, Game 5 is the sharpest moment of pressure either team has faced all season.
Game 5: Knicks at Spurs — Saturday, June 13, 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC. 1
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