Wemby and the Spurs BOUNCE BACK to win Game 3 | INSTANT REACTION

Summary

The Athletic NBA Daily – Wemby and the Spurs BOUNCE BACK to win Game 3 | INSTANT REACTION

Date: June 9, 2026
Hosts: Dave DuFour & Esfandiar Baraheni
Game: Spurs 115, Knicks 111 (NBA Finals, Game 3 at MSG)

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Episode Overview

This episode provides an in-depth instant reaction to Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks. Recorded shortly after the buzzer at Madison Square Garden, Dave DuFour and Esfandiar Baraheni break down the Spurs’ pivotal bounce-back victory on the road, discuss tactical adjustments, key performances—including a signature game from Victor Wembanyama (“Wemby”)—and analyze what both teams need to do heading into Game 4. The conversation is fast-paced, analytical, and punctuated with light humor and behind-the-scenes stories from MSG.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Spurs’ Adjustments and Defensive Gameplan

(02:08, 11:28)

• The Spurs fully committed to having Wemby roam off Josh Hart, daring Hart to shoot threes. Hart responded with four made threes, but the adjustment “changed the complexion” defensively for San Antonio.
• The Spurs forced 13 Knicks turnovers, many of them unforced. This led to 21 Spurs points off turnovers to only 7 for New York—a decisive factor.

“The real secret of this game is that they threw the ball away so many times…the Spurs wind up with 21 points off turnovers to only seven for the Knicks. That’s your ballgame right there.” —Dave (09:00)

Victor Wembanyama’s Offensive Transformation

(04:52, 05:30, 06:22)

• Wemby shifted his shot selection: Rather than settling for threes, he attacked the basket early and often. Multiple lobs and “duck-ins” off pick and roll, mainly with Stefan Castle, gave him high-efficiency looks.
• Assertiveness and physicality from Wemby were highlighted: “He was more assertive, that’s for sure. Absolutely.” —ESF (06:32)

“He cut the fat and he was just going to the basket. He’s the tallest guy, you know, not on the planet, but he’s the tallest guy in this league.” —Dave (05:04)

Spurs’ Offensive Flow and Key Contributors

(06:33, 06:54, 10:10, 26:09, 26:29)

• The Spurs’ half-court offense was much improved (118 points per 100 possessions half-court), helped by made threes from role players like Vassell, C. Champagnie, and especially rookie Stefan Castle.
• Castle (23p, 5r, 5a) had his best game of the playoffs—clutch three, several and-ones, and decisive playmaking.

“Castle had a really great game too… Combination of him, Wemby, and Harper—32 of their 40 points in the restricted area, like they were just scoring at will at the basket.” —ESF (05:33)

Knicks’ Struggles: Turnovers, Offense, and Star Underperformance

(08:15–09:30, 13:25, 14:14–14:25)

• Jalen Brunson (32p but 11–25 FG): Again slow to start, forced to grind out points late, with tough, pressured looks.
• Karl-Anthony Towns had “probably his worst game since they were playing the Hawks.” Despite some defensive “stocks,” he didn’t have the assertiveness or shotmaking in this one.

“It is just evident at this point that the Knicks play better when Cat is their best player. Like, when he is the guy dictating everything for them…the Knicks are unstoppable. They cannot lose. And I think tonight you didn’t see that.” —ESF (09:00)

• Knicks as a team had only 18 assists on 40 FG makes, a massive drop from previous wins, and reverted to “a lot of isolation basketball, a lot of, a lot of dribbling the air out of the ball.” (13:25)

Game Flow, MSG Atmosphere & Psychological Factors

(03:40–04:21, 39:10)

• Both teams (and reporters!) dealt with security delays at MSG, but the crowd was electric, especially for the Knicks’ first NBA Finals home game in 27 years.
• Despite adversity, the young Spurs demonstrated impressive poise under the bright lights of MSG—“a big testament to this young group.”

“The way that they handled the pressure of playing in MSG was such a big testament to this young group that, you know, in the face of so much adversity…” —ESF (03:40)

Officiating and Physicality

(04:50, 21:06–25:35)

• Knicks head coach Mike Brown and fans complained about the free throw disparity (Spurs 10 FT in 4th), but both hosts agree it wasn’t the reason NY lost:

“I will say, that’s not why the Knicks lost this game…Turnovers, [Towns not] adjusting in game, they didn’t rise to the level of the Spurs.” —Dave (25:32–25:40)

Notable Player Highlights & Clutch Moments

• OG Anunoby had a huge game—“locked in” from three and fearlessly attacked Wemby. “He has no fear attacking Wemby either. He had another drive and dunk on him.” —ESF (26:22)
• De’Aaron Fox (for San Antonio) struggled but hit a huge late-game basket: “Fox did not play well…but he knocked down a massive shot.” —ESF (16:17)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Spurs’ approach in Game 3:

  “They cut the fat and he [Wemby] was just going to the basket. He’s the tallest guy, you know, not on the planet, but he’s the tallest guy in this league.” —Dave (05:04)

• On Knicks’ offensive issues:

  “It just felt like there was a lot of isolation basketball, a lot of, a lot of dribbling the air out of the ball.” —ESF (13:25)

• On Karl-Anthony Towns’ importance:

  “It is just evident at this point that the Knicks play better when Cat is their best player…the Knicks are unstoppable. They cannot lose. And I think tonight you didn’t see that.” —ESF (09:00)

• On the assist-turnover dynamic:

  “Don’t give the game away. Which is what they did. 21 points off turnovers…I mean a +14 advantage for the Spurs off turnovers. That’s the basketball game.” —Dave (30:24)

• MSG Debut Reflection:

  “For both of us. For it to be game three of the NBA finals. First finals game in 27 years…people talk about the pageantry of this arena and this crowd. It really all does apply.” —ESF (38:48)

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Analysis: What’s Next for Both Teams?

(14:25–15:10, 17:00–17:49, 27:48–29:07, 32:44–33:52)

For the Knicks:

• They need Karl-Anthony Towns to be aggressive and dictate play
• Cut down on unforced errors
• Return to their “beautiful game” offense: sharing, driving, and kicking for open looks instead of isolation

For the Spurs:

• Stick with what worked—aggressive interior offense, Wemby as a roller, role players stepping up from three
• Keep up the physical defense and force turnovers
• Maintain energy, especially from Wemby (who has oscillated game-to-game in these playoffs)

“This is your blueprint—do this again, do this again. You gotta, you gotta shoot it at least as well as the next two. Good luck in game four with that, because feels like one that the Knicks are going to come out and light the world on fire.” —Dave (27:53)

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Predictions & Fun Speculation

(36:58–38:39)

• Esfandiar: “I think the Spurs are going to tie it 2-2.”

• Dave: “You know what, I think I might be with you…But the truth is, it’s hard for me to say, ‘Oh, they can’t win.’ They could still win it in six, theoretically.”

• Both marvel at how close the series has been: only 7 points total separating teams over the first three games.

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Behind-the-Scenes & Lighter Moments

• Both hosts’ first game at MSG, in the Finals, with a celebrity-filled crowd (Ben Stiller, Secret Service, a prank with Pat McAfee spilling coffee on Adam Silver—(39:10))
• Multiple jabs and running gags about the delayed pregame logistics, New York atmosphere, and the stakes of the finals for both basketball cities.

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Key Timestamps

• [02:08] – Spurs’ defensive adjustment: Wemby guarding Hart, forcing turnovers
• [04:20] – Spurs’ composure under MSG pressure
• [06:33] – Stefan Castle’s breakout performance
• [09:00] – Knicks’ turnover struggles and Towns’ off night
• [13:25] – Knicks’ offensive stagnation (assists way down)
• [16:17] – Fox’s clutch late-game shot
• [17:26] – Do the Spurs have a shot to win the series?
• [25:32] – Officiating, physicality, and its real impact
• [29:29] – What’s the next counter-move for Knicks and Spurs?
• [32:44] – Reconnecting the Knicks’ offense; drive-and-kick
• [36:01] – Wemby’s (and Towns’) performance keys
• [36:58] – Game 4 predictions: “Spurs are going to tie it 2-2.”
• [38:48] – Hosts reflect on their first game at MSG

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Final Thoughts

This episode encapsulates both the intensity of a hard-fought NBA Finals and the subtle details—tactical and psychological—that turn a pivotal Game 3. While the Spurs’ youth and adaptability shone bright, the Knicks’ self-inflicted wounds proved costly. Both teams’ paths forward are clear: play sharper, stick with (or rediscover) winning identities, and prepare for Game 4’s looming pressure. The series is very much alive, with momentum suddenly back in play.

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“The margins for this series are just incredible…You can’t ask for a better NBA Finals.” — Esfandiar (34:26)

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Transcript

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[Dave Duor]

Good morning and welcome to the NBA Daily. I'm Dave Dufour here with Esperahenny.

[Esperahenny]

We can really call it morning.

[Dave Duor]

It's 20 minutes to 1am Eastern time at MSG, where the spurs stay alive by winning game three 115, 111s. We thought maybe, maybe that it was over. And the Knicks I think still gave the Spurs a scare late game, you know, Jalen Brunson, 12 points in the fourth quarter.

[Esperahenny]

Huge OG Anunoby shot.

[Dave Duor]

Huge Anunoby game, but just not quite enough for the spurs who kind of figured some things out it seems between game two and game three.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, they made their adjustments. You know, they've been toying around with the idea of Wemby guarding Josh Hart, having him roam around, but they fully committed to it in this game. They decided that we're okay with Josh Hart knocking down threes and he to his credit like Josh did his job. He knocked down four threes. But ultimately I think that changed the complexion of this game for the Spurs. Defensively they were able to force turnovers. Knicks had 13 turnovers. A lot of weird ones too.

[Dave Duor]

I we could say yeah, they forced turnovers because, you know, it's how you talk about the sport. Truth is, a lot of unforced, a

[Esperahenny]

lot of bad ones for the Knicks.

[Dave Duor]

Just throwing the ball away. And the game started that way for the Knicks. And I almost wonder if maybe the disruption of their pregame routine, you know, both teams had to get here. Well, let's talk about that.

[Esperahenny]

How about the disruption of our pregame routine?

[Dave Duor]

Okay. Well, I'm not going to sit and complain, but yeah, we did have to wait in a warm line.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

Outside in the sun for a little while so that the Secret Service could, you know, hand check all of our bags. And that was a scene.

[Esperahenny]

It was a scene.

[Dave Duor]

That's one of the biggest boos I've ever seen in my life.

[Esperahenny]

That was in real life. Yeah. And by the way, it was booze. I saw some people saying, oh, was it?

[Dave Duor]

Actually, they were saying boo urns. Actually. You know, but I, I, I wonder, man, the, the Knicks, you know, I wonder if they were a little thrown off. I don't, I don't know. The spurs are a good basketball team. Right. So they, the idea that this could have been a sweep. Absolutely. But, but certainly I think we all thought the spurs were going to have a chance to come back and win even in this game. Three. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

I will say, like, to, to your point about the circumstances, you, you know, it was loud in here from tip and like, the crowd was fully in here. Regardless of, like, how long it took for people to get inside, everybody waiting outside in the sun and everything, it was packed. As soon as the starting lineups were going, like, I don't think there was any sort of disruption to the flow of things. So it made for a really great atmosphere. Knicks fans came out, they supported in a massive way. I just think the spurs, the way that they handled the pressure of playing in MSG was such a big testament to this young group that, you know, in the face of so much adversity at this point in their season.

[Dave Duor]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

Everybody thought two weeks ago that they're going to walk away with the championship now. Down two. Oh, they lost two of their games at home. This was the season on the line. Yeah. I mean, they answered.

[Dave Duor]

So does the series start when, when a home team wins? Is that kind of where we're at now?

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

You know, you mentioned the lights were not too bright for them tonight. And including late game, you know, where you maybe start to see younger teams crumble and shy away from the pressure. The spurs hit big shots. You know, they go to the free throw line 10 times in the fourth quarter.

[Esperahenny]

Mike Brown was not happy about that.

[Dave Duor]

No, but they kept putting pressure on the rim. I mean, I think that was one of the secrets of the game. And it started with Victor Winmanyama scoring in the paint in the first quarter. You know, we talked about the importance for him to get going and sometimes it's about him making that three. He gets that first three or the first couple to go down. He usually has a pretty good shooting night. But in this game, his first touch, he drove to the basket. His next four touches were in the paint. That was the difference in this game from the last two games. Is that his shot profile, his shot diet, as we like to say. He cut the fat and he was just going to the basket. He's the tallest guy, you know, not on the planet, but he's the tallest guy in this league.

[Esperahenny]

It feels like he's the tallest guy on the planet.

[Dave Duor]

I mean. Yeah. When you stand next to him.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. The great thing about Wemby, and you're right, it used to be the three point shot and the reliance that we talked about. I think it was just easy opportunities, like the two lobs that he caught early in the first quarter. A couple of duck ins off of pick and roll situations between him and Stefan Castle. Castle had a really great game too. The combination of him, Wemby and Harper, I think at 32 of their 40 points in the restricted area, like they were just scoring at will at the basket. And if you're the Knicks, you're looking at this and saying, so what happened to our pack the paint defense?

[Dave Duor]

Because it was.

[Esperahenny]

For the first two games, it was packing the paint.

[Dave Duor]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

Not letting them catch lobs, not letting them get easy opportunities. Where did that go in this game? Do you feel like that was the physicality aspect, like the. The calls going one way or another or something else? Maybe.

[Dave Duor]

I also just think that the. The spurs did a better job of committing to their spots and especially Victor Womenyama. I don't think he worked as hard in the first two games as he worked in game three.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, he was more assertive, that's for sure. Absolutely.

[Dave Duor]

I mean, he was. It was a forceful demonstration of how to actually play in the post and get inside, get behind the defense and make stuff happen from there. And you mentioned Stefan Castle. Just a fantastic game out of him. And he stuck the open shots that he needed to hit. He was great around the basket. He was clutch, rim pressure.

[Esperahenny]

You know, I mean, we. Everybody talked about that final playing game too, between wemby and Castle and who should have turned. Was it Wemby's fault? Was it Castle? It was Wemby's fault by the way. But a lot of eyes on Stefan Castle and how he could play. He hasn't played that well in this series yet. And he comes out and genuinely has, I mean maybe one of his best games in this playoff run. What was it, 23 points, five rebounds, five assists. He knocked down that huge catch and shoot three in the fourth quarter. He also made two clutch free throws to make it a four point game when Anunoby was. Was about to hit that shot. So just massive plays for Castle. And how many times did he get an and one in this game?

[Dave Duor]

It must have been three. Yeah, that, you know, he again the body control that he has, the core strength, it allows him to hit that stop on his euro step and, and then, you know, he's a pretty good finisher around the basket. Regardless of what we saw in the first couple games of the series. He's, you know, he's got that hand wrap and he goes up with two hands. I wonder sometimes if that's going on there. But a great game out of them. Spurs defense I thought again did a wonderful job of Jalen Brunson on Jalen Brunson making his life difficult. Yeah. And again he turns it up in the fourth quarter. It's what he does. But another poor shooting night from him. The ball pressure is, you know, they're picking him up at half court. Yeah, it's. It's all night long.

[Esperahenny]

11 of 25 for this game for, for Bronson by the way, like obviously not he end. He ended up with 32.

[Dave Duor]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

Got to the free throw line a couple times, but just cook down the stretch. Cook down the stretch. But it's kind of, it's become typical of him in the series to have to get things going in the early quarters and then find his rhythm in that fourth quarter. They haven't had like a big Brunson game like one where he just.

[Dave Duor]

Well, he's not getting a lot of easy looks.

[Esperahenny]

He's not.

[Dave Duor]

I mean, you know the, the relocation threes haven't. They haven't been there. Part of this is also in the game tonight. This is Carl Anthony Town's worst game of the series. It's probably the worst game that he's had and not that he had in

[Esperahenny]

the last couple months.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. But yeah, it's probably his worst, maybe his worst game since they were playing the Hawks.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, I, I felt cat's Presence more defensively in this one, he had five stocks. He had a lot of great defensive plays. In that second quarter when the Knicks went on an 8, 0 run, it was Cat with the offensive rebound. The poke out like he was the guy spurring them on the. They play their. It's just evident at this point that the Cat, the Knicks play better when Cat is their best player. Like when he is the guy dictating everything for them. He, the Knicks are unstoppable. They cannot lose. And I think tonight you didn't see that.

[Dave Duor]

Well, the three ball didn't drop for him, you know, and he had a couple of good looks from three. And that I think has been part of his process. I mean he was shooting 48% from three the playoffs coming into this game, which is pretty absurd, you know, and, and again, like I just don't think he took as many opportunities to attack Victor Weminyama as we've seen in the, in the first two games of the series. Just was less forceful. And I, I think you can say that about the Knicks in general, but the, the real secret of this game is that they threw the ball away so many times the spurs wind up with 21 points off turnovers to only seven for the Knicks. That's your ball game right there. And this because the spurs want to play fast. They want to get in that transition, that semi transition.

[Esperahenny]

You've been on this all season. I completely agree.

[Dave Duor]

And the other thing that they accomplished tonight is actually their half court office was pretty good. Yeah, they were up around 118, 118 per 100 possessions in the half court. Now what the Knicks were able to do was to stall a lot of those possessions where you know, you get to that short shot clock, four seconds or less. Yeah. And the spurs weren't near nearly as good, but their floor for offense in the half court in this game was much better than we've seen out of them in the absolute couple.

[Esperahenny]

It also, I mean it just helps have guys knock down their threes. Right. It's as simple as that for the spurs. Like Devin Vassell knocked down three threes, Champagne knocked down three. Even Steph Castle knocked down a couple. Like they were able to get their ancillary role player guys to knock down their threes. And you look at it from the Knicks side of things, it's like Shamit was one of seven, Bridges was 03. You know, Jordan Clarkson came in, played some good minutes for them in that third quarter, but outside of og, he

[Dave Duor]

played some good minutes in the third quarter and then the start of the fourth quarter. Quarter was.

[Esperahenny]

It was bad.

[Dave Duor]

Jordan Clarkson time.

[Esperahenny]

It was bad.

[Dave Duor]

You know, he had a turnover. He had an airball and a bad foul in the first few minutes of the fourth quarter. So, I mean, he gave some and then he took some away, you know,

[Esperahenny]

the Jordan Clarkson way, I guess. Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

The biggest adjustment. What did you see out of the spurs that, that you felt like was the biggest change from game two to game three.

[Esperahenny]

They, they found easier ways to get Wemby going offensively. And I honestly think that has to do with their spacing in the second roll. Like they were running some empty side stuff. Castle and Wemby, well, he actually rolled

[Dave Duor]

on the pick and roll.

[Esperahenny]

He rolled on the pick, absolutely. Yeah. He was more aggressive looking for his own shot in that, in that like restricted area. It also opened up the floor for Castle. Castle is so good at like snaking the pick and roll, getting his defender in jail, and now he's going to draw a free throw. And so just being aggressive seems to be the way for the spurs here moving forward. It has a trickle down effect to the rest of their offense, where the shots are falling, where they're getting to the hoop. Everything to your point about the offensive rating just looks better for them when they're being the. This dominant paint presence. You got to be that when you have this 75 monster that nobody can catch lobs on. I wonder what the counter is for the Knicks. Do we see more Mitchell Robinson? Because I feel like, I feel like Mitchell Robinson did a guard.

[Dave Duor]

He's done a good job, honestly.

[Esperahenny]

So maybe that's the solution. It's just crank up the Mitchell Robinson minutes more, match him with Wemby maybe a little bit more.

[Dave Duor]

I think that that's tricky because as good of an offensive rebounder as he is and, and you know, you. His passing out of the offensive rebound is great. And we saw them go to a lineup that was basically Mitchell Robinson and shooters, smaller guards so that, hey, we get this rebound, we kick out, we have an open look for three. We've got people out there that can knock it down. But. But they're going to hack him, they're going to put him on the free throw line, they're going to disrupt what you're trying to do on offense. And then he doesn't really give you. It's not like when you have Carl Anthony Towns out there, who's a guy who can put the ball on the floor, he can take the shot. He's just more of a threat. Whereas Mitchell Robinson, unless you're going to get him in a lob, which against Victor women Yama, you're just not going to get a lot of those. Yeah, he's almost a zero during your regular half court offense. You know they're not going to. Everyone has now seen the clip from game two. Four minutes left in the second quarter of the beautiful game. Knicks where they get.

[Esperahenny]

That wasn't there tonight. That wasn't there. Yeah, I mean, let me, let me take a look at their assist total. So The Knicks had 18 assists on 40 shots. That's staggering. Yeah, that's, you know, like that, that to me shows. And Mike Brown was saying this in his post game press conference. It just felt like there was a lot of isolation basketball, a lot of, a lot of dribbling the air out of the ball. And what they had been so good at, especially in the first two games of this series was okay, hey, we have. If they're trapping Brunson or they're sending two to Brunson, he's moving quick off of the ball. Someone is in the middle of the floor, whether it's Hart, whether it's Shamet, whoever, and he can make decisions and make reads. We, we just didn't see that at all. Right. I wonder if that's maybe a Spurs thing where, where they're doing a better job of just guarding one on one, not having to send multiple kind of guys to the ball. I don't know.

[Dave Duor]

It didn't feel like the Knicks were able to, to break down the defense. You know, they weren't getting to the paint very often.

[Esperahenny]

That feels like a cat thing. That feels like it's, it's just all dependent on Carl Anthony Towns at this.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. Yeah. Well, let's just spin it ahead then.

[Esperahenny]

Okay.

[Dave Duor]

How do they bounce back? What do the Knicks need to do? Is it just Karl Anthony Towns go out there and play better?

[Esperahenny]

It really does end up being that.

[Dave Duor]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

It just, it's. I hate it because at this point of the series, so much of it has to be play better. Yeah, but we saw tonight how playing better for Steph Castle and Victor Wembanyama completely flipped this game. I think the same thing applies to Carl Anthony Towns. I mean, look, they've, they've had some pretty good games from Mikhail Bridges. He was absolutely nothing for them tonight. That's a huge part of this as well. It's just shot making. It's cat really making things difficult for Wemby. Putting the pressure on the spurs defense to Guard him. That wasn't there tonight. And I think that's a big reason why the Knicks ended up losing.

[Dave Duor]

My worry if I'm the Knicks is that we actually got a pretty good performance out of our bench. Landry Shamit was good. You mentioned Jordan Clarkson and okay, how's that going to look in game four? Right. I mean, this was still a close game and the Knicks had a chance to look late. Just, you know, a few mistakes here and there. Again, the turnovers for them going back to that. And it started in the first quarter where they were just unforced errors. They would flip the ball out of bounds.

[Esperahenny]

You know what it was? Do you remember in game two when the spurs were turning it over like crazy and it were these random pitch back passes. It felt like that for the Knicks tonight where a guy would be trailing the play and it would just be a little bit short of where his, his pass was supposed to be or where he was supposed to catch the ball. And it, yeah, man, it just was one of those nights for the Knicks and I don't think their shot making was up to par, especially in that fourth quarter. It just felt like every time the Knicks were trying to answer, they didn't have the shots fall. That's, it's as simple as that. And by the way, kudos to de' Aaron Fox because Fox did not play well. Fox did not play well at all in this game. Continues to struggle in this series. But he knocked down a massive shot.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. Big clutch shot at the end. I mean, he was 3 of 13 when he hit that shot in the paint. Yeah. And this is why, you know, even when I was saying, hey, Dylan Harper needs to close these games, the idea was never to remove Fox because Fox is still a positive contributor. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

He showed you what he can do for them. Right.

[Dave Duor]

Even when the shots don't fall, he mixes up the defense. He gets things moving. He's good passer, you can trust him on the defensive end. But Dylan Harper being out there has given them honestly a ball handler with more poise than anybody else.

[Esperahenny]

Harper was excellent tonight.

[Dave Duor]

He just, he doesn't get flustered by the, by the Knicks defense ever. He puts him in a spin cycle, can go inside. He's got a great handle again. He gets to the paint 2ft, 2ft in the paint. And all of the spurs good offense comes from the inside out. Yeah. Every good look that they get.

[Esperahenny]

I'll ask you this question. Is what you saw tonight from San Antonio enough for you to believe that they could win? This series because it's really hard to come back from that. We know this now at this point, how impossible it is to come back from down to nothing, especially when you lose those first two games at home.

[Dave Duor]

Well, you only got to win one more to tie it up.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

And so, you know, I mean, I know.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, thank you very much, Math.

[Dave Duor]

But. But the truth is, it's hard for me to say, oh, they can't win. Look, they could still win it in six, theoretically. I don't think that the. I don't think the Knicks are losing four in a row. I don't think the Knicks. I don't know if they're going to lose two in a row. Like this Knicks team, we got to throw this one out. They won 13 straight games.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, yeah.

[Dave Duor]

They lose this by four points. This was not. It's it. This was not a complete judge.

[Esperahenny]

How many times did we look at each other in this game and say the spurs should be up by more?

[Dave Duor]

A lot. I mean, including, you know, the second quarter. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

You know, that's a testament to the Knicks.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah, the Knicks went nuts in that second quarter. And credit the spurs for still hanging in there and not, you know, being able to eat those punches. But after the first, they, you know, the spurs shot the lights out and the Knicks never really felt like they were out of it. I mean, to the point where sometimes I'd look at the score and I

[Esperahenny]

was a little bit surprised that the spurs were winning.

[Dave Duor]

Yes, I agree. Point game, spurs, it feels like the Knicks are win. And maybe that's just msg. I don't know.

[Esperahenny]

Maybe. But.

[Dave Duor]

But it definitely different experience than San Antonio where the Knicks fans really took over. But, you know, it didn't feel like the spurs were ever really able to pull away, even when they were shooting hot. And I just knew that the Knicks were going to catch fire at some point and hit some big threes, but just not quite enough. And frankly, if you're the Knicks, you got to stop saving your best stuff for the fourth quarter. You could maybe put this game to bed, you know, if you actually do your job. And I don't know what it is about this game that caused them to be so just flippant about the basketball and literally just not. It was. Some of it was being sped up. I think the spurs defense were. Was very physical. They did a really good job. Victor Wimanyama had more energy, but a lot of it was mental lapses, which, you know, I just talked about how, of course, you know, make me look Bad Nick. But I just talked about how they don't really make mental mistakes like this.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

And it was just, it was easy stuff. It was cross court passes going out of bounds. It was, you know, Jordan Clarkson threw a pass that almost got intercepted. You know, it's.

[Esperahenny]

They started this game rusty. It was like 16 to 6 at some point in that first quarter. And I do, you know, to your point earlier, I do wonder if some of the noise and like coming back home and the anticipation for the game and it being like the first finals game here in New York for the first time in 27 years and you know, you know who is here. You know what I mean? Like all of that, I feel like maybe did impact them. They will say it didn't, you know, obviously, but like, I don't know, it just feels like maybe it did.

[Dave Duor]

I'm not sure. I mean, again, I don't want to take anything away from what the spurs did. Absolutely. And you know this, the Knicks really did make a lot of mistakes for whatever reason. And they weren't. The spurs were able to capitalize on though, again, the 21 points off turnovers. That is the basketball game. They had a 14 point advantage there.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

Everywhere else, if you go and look paint points, pretty similar. Even the shooting, very close for both teams. The difference was that the spurs were able to create more opportunities or were given more opportunities, however you want to look at it, to get easy ones. And the Knicks didn't do that for themselves, including at the free throw line. You know, The Knicks shot 10 for fewer free throws in the game. But did it feel like Jalen Brunson was as aggressive at trying to get to the line until late Again, why wait until the.

[Esperahenny]

Well, I'll ask you this because, you know, Mike Brown was not happy with the officiating post game. I know from just walking around this arena after the game that Knicks fans were not happy with these.

[Dave Duor]

They weren't happy outside, apparently, which we. We haven't left yet. So.

[Esperahenny]

I know, we'll see if, if we

[Dave Duor]

get into an altercation. Security on down here.

[Esperahenny]

There's no security coming for us. We're gonna handle business, don't worry. Yeah, WWE wrestlers right here.

[Dave Duor]

But there was a chair shot outside.

[Esperahenny]

There was a chair.

[Dave Duor]

Seen the video.

[Esperahenny]

I just. Do you feel like the officiating played a part? Because we kind of talked about this during the game too, where it felt like some of the physicality.

[Dave Duor]

Well, they did the second half. They tried to dial it back. Yeah. And. Okay. I don't know how basketball.

[Esperahenny]

By the way, you guys have probably seen this, but Wemby with a full face push on Brunson. Yeah, you know, like those types of plays make you think. All right, where is this?

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[Esperahenny]

I'm not saying.

[Dave Duor]

That's not what I'm saying. Spurs way.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, okay.

[Dave Duor]

And some of the foul calls, were they fouls in the first two quarters of this game? No. Yeah, we've seen that all playoffs though.

[Esperahenny]

And you know, the inconsistency at the

[Dave Duor]

end of the year, if we're going to give a critique on the NBA, I think that that's the biggest one. And I think for the viewers at home who are watching games, that is the thing that is most apparent. Why is it a foul in the third quarter but not in the first quarter? You know, why is it the last five seconds of a game? You could do anything you want.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. I will say that's not why the Knicks lost this game.

[Dave Duor]

Definitely not.

[Esperahenny]

It's not why the Knicks lost this game. Like Carl Anthony Towns having 11 points on 10 shots.

[Dave Duor]

Right. Turnovers, they didn't adjust in game. Yeah, they didn't, they didn't rise to the level of the Spurs. Again, the physicality that the spurs came out with. Yeah, the Knicks didn't match. It just wasn't, it wasn't the same as it was in San Antonio for them. The lights might have been too bright for the spurs in, in the first two games, but they were ready for this game and, and the Knicks just were not sharp for whatever reason. The ball was all over the gym and that's really the game, man.

[Esperahenny]

The one guy who was sharp was O.J. anunoby.

[Dave Duor]

Absolutely.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, he was incredible in this.

[Dave Duor]

Well, we watched him in the pregame warm ups and he goes 48 for 50.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

From around the three point line and he was locked in. And this is a guy who will shoot a contested three, no problem. And he just had a great night.

[Esperahenny]

Shoot. He has no fear attacking Wemby either. He had another drive and dunk on him.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah, attack.

[Esperahenny]

This is the thing.

[Dave Duor]

Right. So Wemby is Maybe over committing on some of these closeouts against OG Anunoby, against Carl Anthony Towns.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

And they have been aggressive about attacking those closeouts and getting the basket. Wimby can't turn on a dime. He's, you know, it's just too much momentum.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

And OG has made him pay for it now a few times. I mean OG Anunoby essentially sees a green light.

[Esperahenny]

Yep.

[Dave Duor]

Every single time Wemby is running out at him at the three point line. I, I would love to see what happens if the rest of the team did that. You know what if every time he came out and contested a shot.

[Esperahenny]

Well, I mean we saw it in game too like that that the move, drive kick, move, drive kick like that to me is the beautiful game. Knicks, you know and they have to get back to that. The, the number that keeps jumping out to me is 18 assists on 40 shots. That's, that's way different compared to game one and game two. They got to be better than that. That's the, that's the counter is just truthfully like pressing the play better button.

[Taylor from Total Soccer Show]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

For a couple of these guys and, and hoping that it, it changes things for them. I think they will look better in game four. Yep. I think the spurs will have to give it everything they have because also this is still their season on the line. Going up three one is basically just as bad as going down three nothing. It's, it's, it's very hard to come back from. So I think the spurs have a chance to tie the series.

[Dave Duor]

Sure.

[Esperahenny]

How do you feel?

[Dave Duor]

I mean listen, it's. If their shots fall.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

Then they can, they can win the game. But it's, they are.

[Esperahenny]

It would be so bizarre if this happens, man. Wow.

[Dave Duor]

They are very make it make or miss. And they don't have the shooting consistency that the Knicks have. And that was my concern coming into the playoffs for the spurs and they managed to. To work around it when they don't shoot well. I mean they didn't shoot incredibly well in this game. They started out hot but it didn't, they didn't finish that way. And so I, I think you, you look ahead to a game four and yeah. This is your blueprint. Do this again, do this again. You gotta, you gotta shoot it at least as well as the next two. Good luck in game four with that because feels like one that the Knicks are going to come out and light the world on fire. But then you've got to put pressure on the basket too. It's not the shots come for the spurs, when the two feet get into the paint by Harper, Castle and Fox and Wemby to a certain degree, but really Wemby is a finisher. When he drives, he's driving to finish. When he's get the ball around the basket, he's trying to finish and then sticking with the pick and roll, not the pick and pop. Yeah. I, I actually would love it if Victor Womenyama only hit those rhythm pull up threes instead of.

[Esperahenny]

He had a couple big ones in the fourth, I think, or in the second half in general.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. So let that, let the three ball come to you when it's there. But otherwise I think that their game plan for, for game three should carry over. I mean, a lot of it was just improvements. It was make some of the shots that we missed, you know, don't make some of the mistakes. The dumb fouls that, that we saw at a Steph Castle in the first two games, you only had one of those.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. Yeah, it was bad.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

I, it's funny because I've, I've asked a bunch of coaches about this before and it's like, how do you predict what the counter is going to be? And we all expected what the spurs did today to be the thing they would start out with in Game one or, or Game two. Yeah, sure. But we, we expected that would be the opening matchups, that it would be Wemby guarding Hart and that, you know, maybe OG ends up guarding like.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

That did not happen until this point in the series. And so how do the Knicks now predict forward like, or. Or how do the Spurs.

[Dave Duor]

Right. Let me ask you though, if you've been so successful that you won 13 straight playoff games, they've been incredibly run.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

Why would you change anything based off one game where you, you missed a lot of.

[Esperahenny]

So would you. So you wouldn't change a damn thing.

[Dave Duor]

No, I mean, I think you.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

Let's not turn the ball over, guys. Let's not trip over ourselves.

[Esperahenny]

Okay. That's.

[Dave Duor]

Don't give the game away. Which is what they did. 21 points off. I mean a plus 14 advantage for the spurs off turnovers. That's the basketball game.

[Esperahenny]

I mean, that, that also relates to the assist numbers too. Like the assists aren't there because they're turning the ball over often.

[Dave Duor]

So.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, I agree. Maybe just play better is the. Is the key here. I, I will say to the point about the win streak.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

What a historic run for the Knicks. I mean, I know it won't end off with 15 wins tying the warriors, et cetera, et cetera. But I was looking through all of the statistics in preparation for that to happen. Massive point differential, number one ever, 173 points.

[Dave Duor]

13 straight wins.

[Esperahenny]

It's, it's dominance. It, it genuinely was one of the best, if not the best, like playoff run of 13 games we might have ever seen.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. And not just playoffs, though. This is just NBA history. Regular season or playoffs. Yeah. The fact that they did it in

[Esperahenny]

the playoffs, it goes to show you how awesome they are. And that is why Knicks fans should be confident in game four. Because how do you, how do you not lose that, Go out and play

[Dave Duor]

your game because you really just, as a, as a coach, you kind of just have to throw it out. Are we going to stink so bad in game four? You know, is, Is Josh Hart going to dribble the ball off his foot?

[Esperahenny]

You know, is OG going to not be able to catch? Yeah, right.

[Dave Duor]

You know, I would guess no, I would guess, yeah, we're going to play better in game four. We're going to protect the ball. But then the other thing is on offense, I again, the lack of connection in game three stood out to me because this team had been, the ball was popping, guys were driving, kicking. I mean, it just felt like not only were they on a string, but they were connected. They knew, they, you know, and that. And again, I go back to this play because now I've seen it 50,000 times. It's hard to do drive, kick, drive. It's very difficult because as the secondary driver, the window, you're going exactly where the other guy was. The defense is there, so you have to time all this stuff correctly. And then the Knicks are cutting on the opposite side on top of all that.

[Esperahenny]

So it's really complicated, but also very intuitive. Right, right.

[Dave Duor]

And so like, I think that again, like, bring that connectivity back. They didn't have it. It was a lot of one on one stuff. I don't know, I just felt like spurs were in their head a little bit.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, sure, I, I do think a lot of that has to do with the spurs flipping the matchups because now it's not. Yes, of course, Carl Towns is very important, but now it's like, okay, Josh Hart, what can you do for us? Of course you're going to knock down threes, but you also have to be a bit of a playmaker. You have to drive the ball and make decisions with it.

[Dave Duor]

I, I did think the one thing the Knicks started working on in the second half when they would have Josh Hart Bring the ball up. They used that to get into, you know, a handoff or to have him, you know, set a screen and basically pre switch the defense to get Brunson, you know, on whoever they were looking for. They started going at Julia Champen in this game, which is something that I would expect to see more often in game four, maybe even early. You know, they, they often wait. The Knicks like to wait until the third and fourth quarter, late third and then fourth quarter to make this all in push and I would love to see what happens.

[Esperahenny]

They are the comeback kings though. They do.

[Dave Duor]

Well, let's be front runners in game four. If I'm the Knicks, that's where. If I'm Mike Brown, I say, guys, let's get out to a big lead and let's hold it. Let's, you know, we want to have nice early night. We want to shut it down in the middle of the fourth quarter.

[Esperahenny]

You know, it'd be crazy. So let's say they do win in game four and game five, kind of following the streak of what they've done throughout the playoffs. Absolutely. Blowing out the Spurs.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

At home. Well, they got to get, look, they got, I know. They got to get there.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. I write a, a Knicks championship parade.

[Esperahenny]

I don't know, I'm just saying storylines.

[Dave Duor]

Cool. Yeah. I mean, listen, this is the sort of game that I think we expected the spurs to have in game two. You know, they had the debt, heartbreaking loss in game one. They've been riding so high. They won the seven game series against the champs.

[Esperahenny]

The margins for this series are just incredible. Yeah. I mean you think about what was it in game.

[Dave Duor]

It was 10 points in game one, one point in game two. And then this game is a four point game.

[Esperahenny]

Four point game.

[Dave Duor]

Like. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

You can't ask for a better NBA Finals in terms of like how seven

[Dave Duor]

points separating these two teams in the first three games.

[Esperahenny]

We've gone into every single fourth quarter and it be almost a tie game. Outside of, I think the, obviously the fourth 14 point comeback that the, the, you know, spurs ended up having.

[Dave Duor]

From a basketball perspective, this has been, this is a great series already.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

Even if it ends in five, you know, this is.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, it's been a tight five games. You know, that's what it is.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. And it's, it has. In my opinion, it's the best version of what the NBA is right now as far as just the, the way that they play, the very modern style that they play, especially on defense. You know, this is 20, 26 defense in the NBA. And it's not really the spurs because Victor is. That's the 3026 defense that Victor.

[Esperahenny]

Speaking of Victor, Player of the game.

[Dave Duor]

Oh, yeah. I mean, you got to give it to Victor. Yeah, I think so.

[Esperahenny]

I think so, too. Stefan Castle is definitely the runner up. Area 51, as I like to call them. I think those two guys just completely flip this game for them.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. 100 and can they do it again? Wemby's been every other game it feels like for most of the playoffs.

[Esperahenny]

Sure.

[Dave Duor]

Does he have the same amount of Energy in game 4?

[Esperahenny]

He has looked better as the series has gone on, though, because he looked. He looked better in the second half of game, too.

[Dave Duor]

Sure.

[Esperahenny]

Obviously looked incredible tonight. Maybe it's like he's slowly starting to figure out what to do.

[Dave Duor]

You know, I think if you're the Knicks, you got to make him run more. I. I didn't feel like they attacked him enough.

[Esperahenny]

I agree.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. We talked about Jalen Brunson kind of isolating on him sometimes, and I think that that's very effective. But it goes back. I would say the guy who maybe not blew the game because that's too much, too much for one guy, but the guy that really cost the next game is Carl Anthony Towns. And not because he was bad necessarily. He just wasn't great.

[Esperahenny]

That's a great way to put it because, like, he still made massive plays in certain moments. I keep going back to that second quarter, but there were a few moments there where he just kept. Whether it was an offensive rebound, the dish out to Jordan Clarkson getting the three. Like he was able to have his impact on the game. The issue is that he's been able to do that for eight quarters between game one and game two. I think he only did it for, like, maybe one quarter in this game. They need him to just be better.

[Dave Duor]

All right, game four. You want to give me a prediction?

[Esperahenny]

Give you a prediction. I think the spurs are going to tie it. Two, two.

[Dave Duor]

Wow.

[Esperahenny]

Why not?

[Dave Duor]

How about that? Why not? That'd be great.

[Esperahenny]

How about that? Come on. We've already had an incredible final series.

[Dave Duor]

Why not lose every game in this series? And the Knicks win in seven and. Incredible.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave Duor]

You know what? I think I might be with you. I don't know if it was because I saw that, you know, the bootleg championship T shirts are already being made and sold on the street.

[Esperahenny]

Oh, man, they're printing them already.

[Dave Duor]

A lot of talk around New York about what a Knicks championship would mean. And I mean, we we start playing in the parade after they won game one. And I wonder if the spurs, you know, they've kind of defied convention this year. There is a.

[Esperahenny]

There, there is a.

[Dave Duor]

You gotta take it personally.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. Speaking of convention, there is an unconventional calm to the way the spurs have been approaching things. Like, even after this game, the way Wemby was talking, truthfully, the way Mitch Johnson has been talking all series is just like, yeah, we kind of know we can figure this out. We're okay. It's first to four. It's not first to two. We'll be okay. And that, that to me is. I. I think that would scare me if I was the Knicks fan. It's like, ah, okay, there's. They. They feel too comfortable in this series right now. Why do they feel that way? It's just something to think about.

[Dave Duor]

And of course, now, because we're saying this, the Knicks are going to come

[Esperahenny]

out and destroy them because. There you go. You're welcome, Knicks fans.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. Again, Karl Anthony Towns. I think that's the secret for the Knicks. If Carl Anthony Towns is the best player on the Knicks, they're going to win because he has been able in the playoffs to make everyone else better when he's playing his best. And this was not, in my opinion, that was not his best.

[Esperahenny]

Look, before we wrap out of here, this was a career moment for myself. I mean, I know it's a career moment for you.

[Dave Duor]

Game at Madison Square Garden.

[Esperahenny]

It is my first game at Madison Square Garden, too. And for it to be.

[Dave Duor]

For.

[Esperahenny]

For both of us. For it to be game three of the NBA finals. First finals game in 27 years. You know, people talk about the pageantry of this arena and this crowd. It really all does apply. Of course, there was a heightened element of Secret Service literally being here.

[Dave Duor]

Celebrity that you could think of was just hanging out, like in the back. It was very cooler. Ben Stiller's. I don't know if he's making a documentary on his phone.

[Esperahenny]

He must be doing something, you know,

[Dave Duor]

I'm not sure what's. I'll be interest to see the footage that he gets. Yeah. And also his wife.

[Esperahenny]

It's coming from my job.

[Dave Duor]

I can't remember her last name, but I want to tell her how much I loved. Hey, dude.

[Esperahenny]

Okay.

[Dave Duor]

It was a great TV show when I was a kid.

[Esperahenny]

Well, if you're listening.

[Dave Duor]

And also, S S may have caused an international incident between Pack McAfee and Adam Silver.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. You know, when you like some coffee, you know, when you try to Like, Bud pass someone, you know, someone was kind of in my way, so I just kind of, like, slid past and I accidentally bumped them. And then I turn around and I realized that it was Pat McAfee and he had spilt his coffee. And then I looked over at who he spilled his coffee on and it was the commissioner, Adam Silver. So, Commissioner, I'm so sorry.

[Dave Duor]

Send the cleaning bill to the Pat McAfee. I'm not CC Andrew Select. He'll take care.

[Esperahenny]

Yes, he will. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you so much. Appreciate it.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

Wait, look, Adam Silver did TV afterwards, so I'm sure he got like, tied to go or something along the lines

[Dave Duor]

of that to do it. Somebody took care of that for.

[Esperahenny]

Thank you very much. All right.

[Dave Duor]

Anything else before we close?

[Esperahenny]

No. Shout out to New York. This was great. You're going to be here for game four. I will not be here for game four, but maybe I'll be back for game six.

[Dave Duor]

Do you think it's going six?

[Esperahenny]

I think it will. I think. I'm sorry, Knicks fans. It's going six.

[Dave Duor]

Knicks in six.

[Esperahenny]

Knicks and six. That's my final prediction.

[Dave Duor]

You.

[Esperahenny]

You were saying Nixon four.

[Dave Duor]

Well, listen, we saw what the Knicks look like. They're a buzzsaw.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. Yes, you're right. Yeah. And look, if it's Nixon 5 would not surprise me at all. But let's go Nixon 6.

[Dave Duor]

Yeah. All right, we'll. We'll see where it goes. S been really fun. We, you know, we don't get to touch each other very often, so we've been having a blast. That's right. Thank you guys for joining us. If you're on the live stream and if you're listening to pod, appreciate it. You, as always, leave us a five star review. You know, like, subscribe all that stuff for Esper Henny, I'm Dave Duor and this has been the NBA Daily. Thanks for waking up with us.

[CFA Institute Advertiser]

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[Discover Advertiser]

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[Wayfair Advertiser]

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[CFA Institute Advertiser]

Wayfair Every style, Every home.