Knicks Complete Largest Comeback in NBA Finals History to Take 3-1 Lead Over Spurs

The New York Knicks have pulled off the impossible, erasing a 29-point deficit to defeat the San Antonio Spurs 107-106 in Game 4 of the 2026 NBA Finals. The victory at a shell-shocked Madison Square Garden marks the largest comeback in the history of the NBA Finals, pushing the Knicks to a commanding 3-1 series lead. For a franchise that has not won a championship since 1973, the stunning result brings them within a single victory of ending a 53-year title drought. Thousands of fans poured into the Manhattan streets following the final buzzer, celebrating a team that has transformed a season of lofty expectations into the brink of basketball immortality.[1][6]

The dramatic finish came down to the absolute final moments of regulation. Trailing by one point with the clock winding down, Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson launched a crucial three-point attempt that missed its mark. However, forward OG Anunoby soared through the paint to tip in the rebound with just 1.2 seconds remaining, securing the historic win. Anunoby's heroics capped off a spectacular individual performance, as he finished the night with 33 points while shooting a blistering 7-for-9 from beyond the arc. Brunson led all scorers with 36 points, orchestrating the offense as New York methodically chipped away at what had seemed like an insurmountable Spurs lead.[1][3]

For the first half of Game 4, San Antonio looked entirely poised to even the series at two games apiece. The Spurs dominated from the opening tip, building a 41-20 lead by the end of the first quarter and extending it to a massive 76-49 advantage at halftime. It was the largest halftime lead ever recorded by a visiting team in the NBA Finals. The Spurs' offense was firing on all cylinders, silencing the notoriously raucous New York crowd and threatening to hand the Knicks a demoralizing blowout loss on their home floor. The 29-point deficit appeared to be the final nail in the coffin for Game 4.[1][6]

But the second half told a completely different story, as the Knicks engineered a defensive masterclass. New York outscored San Antonio 55-25 over the final two quarters, suffocating the Spurs' offensive rhythm. San Antonio went ice cold at the worst possible time, missing 29 of their final 35 shot attempts as the momentum entirely shifted toward the home team. The Knicks closed the gap to 15 points by the end of the third quarter, setting the stage for a frantic fourth-quarter rally that culminated in Anunoby's game-winning tip-in. The collapse etched the Spurs into the wrong side of the record books, making them the first team in Finals history to lead a game by 29 points and still lose.[2][5]

The historic collapse leaves the young San Antonio squad—the second-youngest team to ever reach the Finals—searching for answers as they face elimination. Despite the agonizing loss, Spurs star Victor Wembanyama remained defiant during Friday's practice. The 7-foot-4 French phenom, who has already helped San Antonio stave off elimination twice during the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder, insisted that belief remains high in the locker room. "Everybody thinks, everybody knows, we're going to do it," Wembanyama told reporters. He emphasized the need to isolate the loss and take the remaining series one game at a time, noting that wasting energy on the daunting task of winning three straight games would be a mistake.[2][6]

While the Knicks hold a commanding 3-1 lead, the series has been remarkably competitive, with the final moments of all four games remaining undecided entering the last minute of play. In Game 1, the Knicks led by just four points with 58 seconds remaining before pulling away. Game 2 saw New York win by a single point after a potential game-winning shot by Wembanyama just missed. The Spurs bounced back to win Game 3 by four points, managing to pull away only after the Knicks missed their final three-point attempt. The razor-thin margins suggest that San Antonio is more than capable of competing with New York, provided they can execute down the stretch.[5][6]

This Finals run represents the culmination of a massive roster overhaul and strategic shift for the Knicks. After parting ways with defensive-minded coach Tom Thibodeau following a 2025 Eastern Conference Finals exit, New York brought in Mike Brown to implement a more balanced offensive system. The move paid immediate dividends, as the Knicks secured a 53-29 regular-season record and captured the 2025 NBA Cup in Las Vegas. The team's core—anchored by Brunson, Anunoby, and newly acquired center Karl-Anthony Towns—has proven to be a formidable mix of elite scoring and versatile perimeter defense. The additions of Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart have further solidified a rotation that has overwhelmed opponents throughout the spring.[6]

If the Knicks do secure the championship, it will cap off one of the most dominant postseason runs in recent memory. Under the guidance of their new coaching staff, New York has been virtually unstoppable in closeout scenarios. In their previous series against the Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Cleveland Cavaliers, the Knicks won their clinching games by an almost comical average margin of 39.3 points. They led by as many as 61 points before closing out Atlanta in the first round, demonstrating a killer instinct that has propelled them through the Eastern Conference bracket and into the Finals.[5][6]

The series now shifts back to the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio for Game 5 on Saturday night. If the Spurs can stave off elimination on their home court, Game 6 will return to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, with a potential Game 7 scheduled for the following Friday. Oddsmakers have heavily favored the Knicks to close out the series, with their championship odds skyrocketing to -520 following the Game 4 miracle. But with Wembanyama and the Spurs desperate to keep their season alive, the Knicks will need to maintain their composure to finally hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy and end a half-century of waiting.[2][3][7]