Key events
Starting lineups
New York Knicks
PG Jalen Brunson – 6ft 2in, 190lb, Villanova
SG Mikal Bridges – 6ft 6in, 209lb, Villanova
SF Josh Hart – 6ft 4in, 215lb, Villanova
PF OG Anunoby – 6ft 7in, 240lb, Indiana
C Karl-Anthony Towns – 7ft 0in, 248lb, Kentucky
San Antonio Spurs
PG De’Aaron Fox – 6ft 3in, 185lb, Kentucky
SG Stephon Castle – 6ft 6in, 215lb, Connecticut
SF Devin Vassell – 6ft 5in, 200lb, Florida State
PF Julian Champagnie – 6ft 8in, 217lb, St John’s
C Victor Wembanyama – 7ft 4in, 230lb, Metropolitans 92 (France)
It’s national anthem time at the Frost Bank Center. Four-time Grammy nominated country singer Mickey Guyton does the honors. Starting lineups to come and we should be under way any minute now.
One reason the Knicks’ run has resonated so deeply beyond basketball is that it has arrived at a moment when many Americans seem desperate for a distraction. In her Saturday essay for the Guardian, Ankita Rao argues that New York’s improbable march to the brink of a championship has offered a rare escape from the relentless churn of politics and bad news – and a reminder of the communal joy sports can still provide.
Stars – they’re just like us! A healthy chunk of Madison Square Garden’s celebrity row has migrated south with the Knicks one win away from a drought-busting title.
Last week, we took in Game 1 from a place rarely included in the story of New York’s basketball obsession. Before the team moved to the brink of a first title since 1973, the Guardian was granted access to a Knicks watch party inside the Rikers Island jail complex, where thousands of people in custody gathered to experience the NBA finals alongside the rest of the city.
For a few hours, the routines and realities of life behind bars gave way to the same hope, anxiety, superstition and disbelief that have defined this postseason run.
While Knicks fever spilled into bars, restaurants and living rooms and outdoor gatherings across the five boroughs, it also reached one of New York’s least visible and most scrutinized institutions.
The result is a portrait of New York at a singular sporting moment, seen through the eyes of people who are rarely included in the story of the city celebrating itself.
The atmosphere is building in and around San Antonio’s Frost Bank Center, where fans of both teams are showing their colors less than half an hour before tipoff.
The Knicks may be one win from a championship, but they have already conquered another corner of American culture: fashion. From Taylor Swift’s viral “Stevie Knicks” shirt to Timothée Chalamet’s courtside fits, Knicks fandom has become as much a style statement as a sporting allegiance. If you’re wondering how a 53-year title drought turned into the hottest look of the summer, we’ve got two reads for you.
As the series shifts back to San Antonio for Saturday’s Game 5, the mood around the Knicks remains euphoric after Wednesday’s astonishing comeback from 29 points down. But the aftermath of that victory has produced almost as many headlines as the game itself.
New York police said 56 people were taken into custody following post-game unrest around Madison Square Garden, where authorities estimated roughly 10,000 fans gathered after the final buzzer. Ten officers were injured, including one who was struck in the head by a glass bottle. Police said charges ranged from assaulting an officer and disorderly conduct to weapons possession.
The disorder extended beyond the streets surrounding the Garden. Video circulating online showed Spurs star Victor Wembanyama being jeered by fans as he returned to his Manhattan hotel after the game, with an egg tossed in his direction as security escorted him inside. Wembanyama had already spoken out earlier in the week after videos emerged appearing to show Spurs supporters being harassed in the city.
The French star struck a largely defiant tone on Friday as San Antonio attempted to regroup from the largest comeback victory in NBA finals history. “We’re over it. It’s the playoffs,” Wembanyama said of the collapse, adding that the hotel incident “doesn’t bother me”.
No single play can explain how a team squanders a 29-point lead in the NBA finals. But when historians look back on Game 4, they will probably start with De’Aaron Fox racing toward the basket with a one-point lead and less than 15 seconds remaining. Instead of forcing the Knicks to foul, Fox attacked the rim. OG Anunoby blocked his lay-up attempt. Moments later, the Knicks had completed the largest comeback in finals history. Here’s our closer look at the decision that changed everything.
Preamble
For more than half a century, New York has waited for this. Through blackouts and bankruptcies, dynasties and rebuilds, celebrities courtside and coaches on the hot seat, the Knicks have spent 53 years searching for a championship. Tonight, they are one victory from ending the wait.
Standing in their path is a San Antonio Spurs team still trying to process what happened 72 hours ago.
Game 4 looked over long before it was finished. The Spurs led by 29 points midway through the third quarter and appeared to have wrestled control of the NBA finals back from New York. Then everything unraveled. The Knicks stormed back with the largest comeback in finals history, erasing the deficit before OG Anunoby’s putback with 1.2 seconds remaining delivered a stunning 107-106 victory and a commanding 3-1 series lead.
The result left the basketball world asking two questions. How did San Antonio let it happen? And can the Spurs possibly recover?
History is not on their side. Only one team has ever rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win an NBA finals series. Yet this matchup has been far closer than the standings suggest. Through four games, the Knicks have outscored San Antonio by only eight points. Three contests have been decided in the final seconds. The margins separating triumph and disaster have been razor thin.
That is only part of what makes tonight’s potential closeout game so compelling.
The Knicks have arrived in Texas with a chance to end one of the longest championship droughts in American professional sports and begin preparations for a parade through Manhattan. The Spurs return home convinced they have been good enough to win every game in this series and determined to force a trip back to New York.
One side is chasing history. The other is trying to prevent becoming a footnote in it. Game 5 tips off at 7.30pm local time or 8.30 in New York, roughly an hour from now.
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s what Victor Wembanyama had to say about Wednesday’s historic collapse by San Antonio.
Victor Wembanyama says the San Antonio Spurs have shaken off the biggest single-game collapse in NBA finals history and are ready to face the New York Knicks on Saturday.
The Knicks overcame a 29-point deficit to hand the Spurs a crushing 107-106 victory in Game 4 of the series and can win their first title since 1973 with victory in San Antonio.
“There were a thousand ways we could have not lost that game,” Wembanyama told reporters at practice on Friday. “It felt like there was a time to process this, to really dwell on it, but not any more. We’re over it. It’s the playoffs. There’s no time to regret things for too long.”
That, he added, also goes for having had eggs thrown at him and a water bottle tossed at the team bus in New York.
“I didn’t really think much of it,” he said. “Obviously it’s not good at all. But it doesn’t bother me.”
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