The New York Knicks are one win away from ending a 53-year championship drought, and they got there by doing something no NBA team has ever done in the Finals. Down 29 points in the third quarter of Game 4 against the San Antonio Spurs, the Knicks didn’t just fight back — they rewrote history.
The final score: Knicks 112, Spurs 106. The margin: a comeback that surpassed anything seen in the championship round before. But to call it a rally undersells what happened. New York held San Antonio to 30 points in the entire second half after giving up 76 before halftime. That defensive lockdown turned what looked like a blowout into a statement game.
Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby Deliver the Knocks
Brunson finished with 36 points, including nine in the fourth quarter. But the signature moment came when he buried a three-pointer over Victor Wembanyama’s outstretched arms — a shot that seemed impossible given the Spurs rookie’s 8-foot wingspan. Anunoby matched him with 33 points, plus the game-winning tip-in and a block on the other end that set up his own go-ahead bucket.
The Comeback Trend Is Real
These comebacks are starting to feel routine for New York, which is a strange thing to say about a franchise that hasn’t won a title since 1973. Over the last two postseasons, the Knicks are 10-9 when trailing by double digits. Since Jalen Brunson joined the team, they have the most double-digit comeback wins in the playoffs — 16 in total. More impressive: they’re 5-3 when down 20 or more points, while the rest of the league is 4-71 in that scenario over the same stretch.
In these Finals alone, the Knicks have pulled off two of the five biggest comebacks in championship series history — a 14-point rally in Game 1 and now the 29-point explosion in Game 4.
Culture Over Talent
Head coach Mike Brown and captain Brunson have built something that extends beyond X’s and O’s. Karl-Anthony Towns is the best example. For years, Towns was labeled a soft defender who disappeared in big moments. Now he’s the Knicks’ primary defender against Wembanyama — the most unconventional offensive force in the league. Towns made clutch buckets in Game 4 and held his ground on defense, a transformation that speaks to the culture Brown has instilled.
The Knicks can clinch the title on the road in Game 5. If they do, names like Bernard King, Patrick Ewing, Allan Houston, and Carmelo Anthony — all of whom never won a championship in New York — can finally exhale. Many of them have been in the Garden watching this run. They might want to book a flight.
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