The Knicks have not been here since Patrick Ewing walked off the floor in 1999. Now they’re back. New York swept Cleveland in four games, outscoring opponents by a combined 262 points across eleven straight playoff wins, and will face Victor Wembanyama’s San Antonio Spurs for the 2026 NBA title. Game 1 is Wednesday, June 3 at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC in San Antonio.
What New York is bringing
Jalen Brunson is the reason this team is here. The unanimous Eastern Conference Finals MVP averaged 25.5 points and 7.8 assists against Cleveland while shooting 48.7% from the field. Karl-Anthony Towns (16.9 pts, 10.6 reb in the playoffs) was a mismatch the Cavaliers had no answer for. Mitchell Robinson plans to play Game 1 despite surgery on a broken right pinkie, wearing a protective brace.
There is also a storyline worth noting: Rick Brunson was on the Knicks’ 1999 Finals roster. His son Jalen will now be there too, making them the first father-son pair to reach the NBA Finals for the same franchise. It won’t show up in any scouting report, but it won’t disappear either.
Wembanyama and the numbers that demand attention
San Antonio outlasted Oklahoma City in seven brutal games, and Wembanyama carried almost all of it. His Western Conference Finals averages: 27.3 points, 10.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.7 blocks per game, shooting 48.1% from the field and 40.0% from three. Unanimous WCF MVP. The 2026 Defensive Player of the Year. At 22 years old, this is his first Finals appearance.
The drawback: San Antonio enters Game 1 with three days of rest after going the distance against Oklahoma City. New York had ten full days off. Whether that accumulated fatigue matters will become visible early in the first two games, both played in San Antonio.
The matchup no one can look past
Wembanyama against Karl-Anthony Towns is the central puzzle of this series. Wembanyama protects the rim, spaces the floor to the arc, and defends in open space. KAT needs to stay out of foul trouble and convert in the mid-post before help arrives. Stephon Castle, San Antonio’s electric sophomore guard, presents Brunson with a defensive profile different from any opponent New York has faced this spring: length, athleticism, and the ability to push pace.
Sportsbooks have their verdict. DraftKings lists the Spurs at -205 to win the championship, the Knicks at +170. Wembanyama is the -185 favorite for Finals MVP. Eleven consecutive playoff wins say New York disagrees. This series starts Wednesday.
Sources: ESPN – NBA.com – CBS Sports
