The NBA finals will start on June 3, where the New York Knicks will take on the San Antonio Spurs at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio.
The Knicks are coming off a sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers where they easily took care of their opponent.
After going down 2-1 to the Atlanta Hawks in the first round, the Knicks have proceeded to win eleven games in a row while also having the best 11-Game Point Differential in NBA History according to SNY.
Jalen Brunson has led the Knicks to their first finals appearance since 1999, where they also lost to the Spurs. Brunson won ECF MVP and will need to have his best showing of the season on the NBA’s biggest stage.The Spurs are coming off a long seven game series against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals. Second year guard Stephon Castle put on his best defensive performance of the season, locking down back to back MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Victor Wembanyama won WCF MVP after multiple thirty point games and shutting down Thunder big man Chet Holmgren. Wembanyama’s defense has been critical all season and the Defensive Player of the Year will have a tall task having to guard Knicks center Karl Anthony Towns.
The Knicks will have a tall task having to guard the 7 ‘4 French phenom. However, they might have a possible answer in Mitchell Robinson.
Robinson is a force on the defensive side and is a big body who can potentially guard Wembanyama. However, Robinson is a liability on the offensive side of the ball who can get played off the floor during some games. His shooting is a non-worry for the Spurs, which can close down the floor and hinder the Knicks’ offense.
If Towns has to guard Wembanyama, he could be in for a long series. Wembanyama was the MVP runner up, and every season he looks better and better.
The Knicks do have the defense to shut down Castle and the other Spurs role players. Knicks forwards Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges have been playing excellent defense in this year’s playoffs and have the ability to shut down the Spurs’ guards.
Rookie point guard Dylan Harper has been huge off the bench for San Antonio, providing both defense and great finishing at the rim. Veteran point guard De’Aaaron Fox has been on and off these playoffs, but will have a favorable defensive matchup with Jalen Brunson guarding him.
This NBA finals will be one of the most popular ones we’ve seen in recent memory. The up and coming Spurs vs. the grand market of New York will be must see TV.
I don’t think this series will be short, but Wembanyama is the best player in this series, so I’ll go with the Spurs in six.