The San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks are set to compete for the Larry O’Brien Trophy. The Knicks have not lost in over a month, while the Spurs recently eliminated the defending champions in a seven-game series. This marks a rematch of the 1999 NBA Finals.
Transitioning to their regular season encounters, San Antonio and New York met three times. The Knicks won two of these three games, including the NBA In-Season Tournament Championship. Notably, this marks the first time in NBA history that the two teams from the NBA In-Season Cup meet again in the NBA Finals.
In the two normal regular season matchups, the Knicks averaged 123 points, 47 rebounds, and 29.5 assists per game on 46% shooting and 39% from three. The Spurs are averaging 111.5 points, 44.5 rebounds, and 25 assists per game on 45.78% overall and 31.94% from three. The teams split 1-1.
The NBA Cup statistics were not included in regular matchups, as that is a separate category. In that game, though, New York won 124 to 113 outscoring San Antonio by 16 in the fourth to pull away in the fourth quarter.
Here’s how the stars fared in the matchups. Wemby averaged 24.7 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game. Brunson averaged 26 points and 7.7 rebounds on an inefficient 41% shooting from the field.
This matchup, as mentioned before, has happened before. These two franchises met on the big stage in 1999. The Tim Duncan-led Spurs took on the David Robinson-led Knicks.
San Antonio won the series in five games. Duncan was named finals MVP as he averaged 27.4 points, 14 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game. Robinson, on the other hand, averaged 15.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 4.2 blocks per game.
This was a defensive-led series where neither team was able to crack 100 points in any of the games. The highest total from a team in one game was the Spurs’ scoring 94 points in Game Four.
This was the first championship of the Gregg Popovich and Duncan era. From this point on, the Spurs went on to be a long-running dynasty. From 1999 to 2014, they would win five championships.
For the Knicks, it was a lot of suffering for the fan base. Since that loss to the Spurs till Brunson’s arrival in New York, 23 seasons have passed. Of those 23 seasons, the team missed the playoffs in 16 of them. In the years they did make the postseason, they never made it past the conference finals.
San Antonio took on the Portland Trail Blazers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Oklahoma City Thunder. They won each series in five, six, and seven, respectively. The round two and round three clinchers were on the road.
The Spurs handed the Thunder their first back-to-back losses in the postseason since 2024. They also became the first team ever to beat Oklahoma City on the road in a Game Seven.
New York faced the Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, and the Cleveland Cavaliers. After losing two of the first three games, the Knicks have rattled off 11 straight wins. In those 11 games, they have outscored their opponents by 262 points, which is the most in NBA history entering the NBA finals.
That point differential tops some of the greatest teams, such as the 96′ Chicago Bulls and 17′ Golden State Warriors.
This will be the eighth straight season that a new NBA champion will be crowned. The Spurs are back in the finals for the first time since 2014.
The Knicks have been back on the big stage since 1999, when they lost to San Antonio. Their city and fan base are certainly looking for redemption.
Spurs vs Knicks. Wemby vs Brunson. Who comes out on top?
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