Starting 5: Finals Game 5 tonight: Will there be a champion, or a Game 6?

One game. Two questions.

Will the Knicks capture their first NBA championship in 53 years?

Or will the Spurs extend an unforgettable Finals?

Larry’s on the line tonight in San Antonio (8:30 ET, ABC | Tap to Watch).

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

June 13, 2026

Game 5 In 2 Minutes: Knicks eye long-awaited title, Spurs fight to keep season alive

Captain Comeback: Zillgitt on how Brunson fuels New York’s no-quit mindset

What They’re Saying – Knicks: Resetting to “0-0” after the thrill of Game 4

What They’re Saying – Spurs: Eyeing comeback history and following the 2016 Cavs’ example

Finals Frames: NBA photographers share the stories behind their favorite shots from this Finals

BUT FIRST … ⏰

Will we see a champion crowned tonight?

Game 5 of the NBA Finals tips off tonight (8:30 ET, ABC) as the Knicks, up 3-1, seek their first championship since 1973, while the Spurs look to force a Game 6.

The 2026 NBA Finals are the most-watched NBA Finals through four games since 1998. The Knicks’ comeback win over the Spurs on Wednesday averaged 20.9M viewers, making it the most-watched Finals Game 4 since ‘98.

Game 4 was the most-viral NBA game ever on social media, generating 3 billion views and counting.

Forever Finals: Exactly 10 years ago today, facing a 3-1 deficit, LeBron James & Kyrie Irving delivered matching 41-point performances to lead the Cavs past the Warriors in Game 5 of the 2016 Finals.

Cleveland went on to win the series in seven games, becoming the only team in Finals history to overcome a 3-1 deficit — something the Spurs will now look to recreate.

1. GET READY FOR GAME 5 IN 2 MINUTES

Three nights ago, the Knicks were staring at a 29-point deficit and the possibility of a tied Finals at 2-2.

Today, they’re one win away from their first NBA championship in 53 years.

After completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history – capped by OG Anunoby’s iconic game-winning tip-in – the Knicks visit San Antonio tonight (8:30 ET, ABC) with a chance to capture a title that has eluded the franchise for more than a half-century.

Standing in their way: Victor Wembanyama and a Spurs squad that’s no stranger to staving off elimination. | Steve Aschburner’s 3 Things To Watch

The Knicks’ instant-classic Wednesday win was just the latest chapter in a Finals that’s delivered drama at all-time levels.

Four games in, the moments keep coming – and the history keeps piling up.

• Last-Second Thrillers: This is just the 2nd Finals ever – and the first in 50+ years – that’s seen multiple games decided by one point (Games 2 & 4)
• Last-Minute Theatrics: All four games have come down to clutch time, with lead changes in the final two minutes of Games 1, 2 & 4
• Unprecedented Drama: No other Finals on record has featured lead changes in the final two minutes of three of its first four games (dating back to 1971, when Finals play-by-play tracking began)

Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images

Before this electrifying series, only one other Finals on record had seen Games 1-4 all within five points in the final minute.

The year? 1973 – when the Knicks captured their last championship.

Tonight, they’ll look to come full circle behind a trio that has played its best in the biggest moments: Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns.

• Engine Eleven: The late-game hero in Games 1 & 2, Brunson leads all players this series in both ppg (29.5) and total clutch points (15)
• OG Everywhere: Anunoby’s game-saving block and game-winning tip-in in Game 4 perfectly encapsulated the two-way impact he’s brought throughout the Finals, vaulting him atop Shaun Powell’s latest Finals MVP Ladder
• Big KAT: Towns has delivered on both ends throughout the series, averaging a double-double (15.8 pts, 10.8 reb) while ranking 2nd on Powell’s Finals MVP Ladder
• But The Job’s Not Done: “The hardest game to win is the one that ends someone’s season,” said Towns at Friday’s Media Day. “We’ve got to be our best version tomorrow.”

Ready To Respond: The Knicks hold a 3-1 Finals lead, but they’ve outscored the Spurs by just eight points over the first four matchups.

That’s one bucket per game of separation – and San Antonio has plenty of reasons to believe it can extend this series.

• Flashes Of Fire: The Spurs have led after the 1st quarter and built double-digit leads in each of the first four games this series
• Been Here Before: Facing elimination is nothing new for San Antonio. The Spurs trailed OKC 3-2 in the West Finals before winning two straight to oust the defending champs
• Home-Court Response: That comeback began with a Game 6 bounce-back in San Antonio, where Wembanyama was dominant (28 pts, 10 reb, 2 stl, 3 blk) in a 118-91 win
• “We’re very confident,” said Wemby on Friday. “It’s the Playoffs – there’s no time to regret things for too long.”

Now, one team stands 48 minutes from a championship, while the other fights to keep its season alive.

Who will take Game 5?

Game 5 Reads: Dive into the latest Finals stories and analysis before tonight’s tip-off (8:30 ET, ABC).

• Spurs Comeback Test: Powell on San Antonio’s four biggest obstacles entering tonight
• Hidden Hart: Zillgitt on how Josh Hart’s impact goes beyond the box score
• Inside Game 4: AP’s Tim Reynolds relives a legendary Game 4 by the numbers

2. CAPTAIN COMEBACK: HOW BRUNSON HAS FUELED NY’S NO-QUIT MINDSET

Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images

Since play-by-play tracking began in 1998, teams are 5-734 when trailing by 20+ points in the 4th quarter of a Playoff game.

The Knicks have two of those wins – both in the last month.

The first came in Game 1 of the East Finals, stunning Cleveland to propel New York to a four-game sweep.

The other came Wednesday – an all-time rally capped by an all-time finish from OG Anunoby, sending New York into bedlam and leaving sports fans around the world in disbelief.

For Jalen Brunson, though, belief has never been in short supply, writes NBA.com’s Jeff Zillgitt:

“Where does an epic, never-before-seen NBA Finals comeback begin?

It is an existential and practical question.

Existentially, does it start in the heart? In the mind? Deep within?

Practically, does it start with a defensive stop? A bucket? Inspiring words during halftime or a timeout?

…However you want to dissect and analyze what happened – and the storylines from OG Anunoby to Jose Alvarado are abundant, wonderful and perplexing – Knicks All-Star point guard Jalen Brunson is almost always at the center of the spectacular.” | Read More

3. WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: KNICKS PUT GAME 4’S HIGHS BEHIND THEM

Jalen Brunson was asked at Friday’s Media Day what it feels like to be one win away from an NBA championship.

In Brunson’s mind – and in the Knicks’ collective thought process – they are not.

“Zero-zero.”

Brunson’s response, a small phrase, made up of even smaller numbers, speaks volumes about the mental approach that has the Knicks one win from an NBA championship.

• “Regardless of what’s going on, our mindset and approach has to stay the same,” Brunson said. “I think we’ve done a very good job of that.”
• “The biggest thing is continuing to preach 0-0,” coach Mike Brown said. “Continuing to preach ‘stay present,’ continuing to preach ‘next possession…’”
• “Zero-zero, knowing you don’t get complacent,” Mikal Bridges said … “I think it’s still 0-0, no matter what”

This time, the “what” is arguably a more tantalizing diversion to the Knicks’ mental approach than they’ve dealt with all postseason.

The franchise’s first championship in 53 years is as close as 48 minutes away, OG Anunoby converted one of the most miraculous game-winners in Finals history, and Knicks fans celebrated all night. Things are not normal.

• “Of course that night we all enjoyed the shellshock of what happened,” Karl-Anthony Towns said… “But we all understood the next morning that we had to get back to work.”
• “[OG’s play is] a great moment. It’s one of the best sports moments in New York history. But we’ve got to solidify it with one more win,” said KAT
• “I’ve always told myself when you wake up the next day, it’s time to turn the page,” Brunson said. “Yes, we won, but we still have a lot of work to do.”
• Said Bridges: “We know our job’s not finished.”

Behind them will be the Knicks faithful — who have shown up for their team, in spirit and in person, all Playoffs long.

• “It means everything to us,” Anunoby said. “We know we have the best fans in the world … They’re loud, they’re rowdy, they’re excited … we all feel that. We feed off their energy.”
• Kon On The Scene: Game 5 Player Correspondent Kon Knueppel took in Friday’s workouts, lobbed questions alongside press, and asked Mike Breen where Game 4 ranks all-time among games he’s called…

4. WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: SPURS READY TO RESPOND, AGAIN

San Antonio has seen the film from their Game 4 loss, and the Spurs are ready to turn the page.

• “I feel like everyone took a day to relax, debrief and just hit that reset button,” Dylan Harper said at Friday’s Game 5 media day. “We’ve got another opportunity to go and prove who we are as a team.”
• “I wouldn’t say it was so hard to, like, shake off,” Victor Wembanyama said. “Harder than any other game before, by far, for sure. Now we’re over it.”
• “Woke up this morning ready to go,” Devin Vassell said. “Ready to execute the game plan for the next day.”

What they found in the footage of the Knicks’ 29-point comeback wasn’t complex or hard to break down, they said. In all four games of the series, the Spurs have played well enough to go up by double digits. They’ve also surrendered leads of that size in all four games.

• “I feel like once we get those leads, we start to play a little bit different, take our foot off the gas defensively,” Stephon Castle said. “We have to stay aggressive but be smart through it.”
• “We have to figure out ways to continue to extend our lead,” De’Aaron Fox said. “When they do make these games close, we have to figure out ways to execute down the stretch.”
• “We’ve played them really good for the past four games,” Vassell said. “We just really haven’t been able to close out games.”

At Friday’s Media Day, the Knicks weren’t the only East team on San Antonio’s mind. Needing a historic climb, the Spurs cited the 2016 Cavaliers – the only team in Finals history to overcome a 3-1 deficit.

• “We still have this belief because we’ve seen it,” Fox said. “We’ve seen it be done: that teams have come back from 3-1…”
• “Even with those series, the games that they lost, they were losing by double digits. The games that we’re losing have all been close games.”
• “We’ve made history all year,” said Stephon Castle. “And we’ve proven that with our backs against the wall, we can step up. So I don’t really expect this to be any different.”

5. FINALS FRAMES: NBA PHOTOGS’ DEFINING SHOTS SO FAR

The greatest NBA Finals moments — the ones that define series, the ones that define eras, the ones that can define whole cities — can feel frozen in time.

Often, because they are.

After one of the wildest four-game stretches to start the Finals ever, we talked to a few of the NBA photographers covering the series to get their favorite frames — and the stories behind them — as we head into Game 5.

Joe Murphy

“I was going wide because it was the final shot, and I’m trying to show the shot clock in case it goes in. You like to have that perspective with the image, so you let the viewer know there are 2 seconds left, 1 second left, no time left.

I just enjoyed having this one, between the angle being that nice, seeing people on the bench, the clock, you can see OG with his hand on the ball … and you know it goes in.

I was just honored to be able to catch that shot: a great moment for the Knicks, for the NBA, for the history of the Finals. It’s a shot I’ll be proud of forever.”

Michael Gonzales

“I do this center remote strobe for tipoff, where it’s one light that hits and you get a really cool shadow.

Wemby was walking toward the bench and happened to be on the trophy. I hit it, and it perfectly frame his shadow, where it’s right in the middle of the trophy.

The Spurs are all about the Spurs family, they’re so loyal to each other. So the story of this one is that one of the team as much as Victor — where it shows the Spurs logo, as well as it being his first Finals too.

…his passion for basketball is really deep. He’s an emotional person, and this is his court, this is his home.”

Adam Pantozzi

“It’s not easy to score on Wemby, and Towns managed to get around him and his long arms. He was really excited about it. He came down and had a lot of emotion afterward.

In a situation like this, you kind of track a player as he goes to the rim. And as he gets there, you hope he does something great. In this case, he did.”

Garrett Ellwood

“Victor Wembanyama is such a unique talent.

I had an idea prior to the Finals that I wanted to create an image that would highlight his uniqueness. This photo is exactly what I was going for.

I spotlit the basket to create the lighting effect that I wanted, and Wemby did the rest.  He changes the way I photograph a game due to his length, size and athletic ability.”

Jesse Garrabrant

“Sometimes the moments before the game even starts mean the most to me.

This whole journey for me started with the Big East. My grandmother used to bring me to games way back when Seton Hall still played on campus with only 1,500 people.

I was into the Big East from then on, watching Ewing’s whole career, with him eventually going to the Hall and me starting this photography career.

The Big East led to my job at the NBA. I was here all through Shaq’s career, so to have the legends set up for a jump ball on the greatest stage so many years later was a an incredible moment to witness that brought back a lot of memories.”

Nat Butler

“My best shot I wanna get tomorrow. Every day I want to get something better.

Having said that, this was a cool frame that was a little different. Jalen did a crazy move and instead of celebrating, he looked at his hand. He’s not a guy to go too crazy, but I like those emotional shots.

At Finals, we have other photogs there, so it’s an opportunity to get something different because my colleagues will get that shot. Like Murphy got the amazing shot of the tip-in, that’s an amazing shot.

And as you get closer to a clincher those become more magnified.”