The parity era is here in the NBA, with now eight different champions in the last eight years, which goes to show how hard it is to repeat in this day and age.. The New York Knicks snapped their 53-year drought and defeated the San Antonio Spurs in an impressive five games.
San Antonio led for over 70% of the series, having double-digit leads in every game, but was unable to close out the Knicks. Los Angeles Lakers two-time champion Pau Gasol and former Spur congratulated New York on winning their first Larry O’Brien in over five decades.
Congratulations to the @nyknicks on a historical run to win the @NBA championship! 🏆
Much love to the @spurs for an amazing run! They will come back stronger next season without a doubt 💪🏼
— Pau Gasol (@paugasol) June 14, 2026
Typically, young teams have to take their lumps before winning it all and after taking out the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, it felt like the Spurs did not need those lessons. However, San Antonio choked a few games away late and has no one to blame but themselves. After blowing a 29-point lead in Game 4, it proved to be a nail in the coffin with the Knicks closing them out in five.
But New York’s veteran experience proved to be a great asset with Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson. All five of those players had their respective moments in the Finals, thanks to their trials and tribulations leading up to this stage.
Brunson, as the captain, showed out in a major way in Game 5 with 45 points on 14-for-27 from the field and 4-for-7 from 3-point range. As much as the Knicks would have liked to clinch the title at Madison Square Garden, they did not want to give the Spurs any momentum.
New York now has a target on its back and teams will position themselves this offseason to potentially become the ninth different champion in nine seasons.
LeBron James praises Knicks’ Josh Hart as winning player
A lot of credit foes to Knicks head coach Mike Brown as he galvanized his team after falling down 2-1 to the Atlanta Hawks in the first round. New York did not lose another game until Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
Every player knew their role around Brunson, with Hart being the definition of a role player who does every little thing outside of scoring. Hart had his down moments in the postseason, but LeBron James praised him as a winning player.
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