Knicks First Title Since 1973 Comes on a 94-90 Game 5 Win
Fifty three years. That’s how long New York waited for the Knicks first title since 1973, and on June 13 the wait officially ended. The Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 to close out the 2026 NBA Finals 4-1. This city has not calmed down since.
Jalen Brunson dropped 45 points in the closeout game, the most ever by a Knick in a Finals game, and enough to lock up Finals MVP honors without much debate. It capped off a series that somehow got more dramatic every single night. NBA.com’s official recap covers every stat from the closeout game.
A Series That Broke the Stat Sheets
This wasn’t just a good Finals. Statistically, it might be the best five game series the league has ever produced. Every single game was within five points in the final five minutes, something that had never happened across 30 years of tracked play by play data. San Antonio actually won the first quarter of all five games by a combined 57 points and led by as many as 29 in Game 4. New York just kept clawing back.
| Game | Result | Key Number |
|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | Knicks 105, Spurs 95 | Brunson: 30 pts |
| Game 2 | Knicks win | Series shifts to NY |
| Game 3 | Spurs 115, Knicks 111 | Wembanyama: 32 pts |
| Game 4 | Knicks 107, Spurs 106 | Down 27 at half, biggest Finals comeback since 2008 |
| Game 5 | Knicks 94, Spurs 90 | Brunson: 45 pts, series clincher |
Why the Knicks First Title Since 1973 Means So Much
New York’s last championship came in 1973, led by Willis Reed and Walt Frazier. Between 2001 and 2010 the team didn’t post a single winning season, and it missed the playoffs seven straight years from 2014 to 2020. Brunson’s arrival in free agency in 2022 flipped the entire trajectory. New York has made the playoffs every year since and strung together three straight 50 win seasons for the first time since the Ewing and Riley era. ESPN’s full breakdown of the 53-year wait is worth a read.
This is the third championship in franchise history, and it’s paired with something no team has ever done before: winning the NBA Cup and the Finals in the same season. The Knicks beat San Antonio 124-113 back in December to win the 2025 NBA Cup, meaning these two teams met three separate times on the biggest stages of the year.
How Big Was the Reaction?
Bigger than most people realize. None of the last five Super Bowls generated as much Google search interest as “Knicks” did during this Finals run. New York’s championship merchandise became the top selling gear across all of sports within 24 hours of release on Fanatics. Search interest in role player Jeremy Sochan spiked 250% in a single week. Vintage jersey searches hit an all time high, with “1999 NBA Finals shirt” and “Knicks 1999 finals hat” both breaking out, a callback to the two teams’ previous Finals meeting, which the Spurs won.
Pros and Cons of How This Team Was Built
Pros
- Homegrown continuity: Brunson signed in free agency and became the engine of a title team
- Elite defense, allowing just 104.5 points per 100 possessions across 19 playoff games, best of any postseason team
- Historically clutch under pressure across an entire series, not just one game
- Won it all and the NBA Cup in the same season
Cons
- Bench depth was tested repeatedly by double digit deficits in every Finals game
- Brunson’s efficiency, a 53.6% true shooting mark, was actually his fourth worst of 15 career playoff series
- A coaching search earlier in the year, including multiple rejected interview requests, showed some front office turbulence before the title run
Common Mistakes People Make Talking About This Team
Assuming the Spurs “choked” is a big one. San Antonio led by 20 or more points multiple times and still lost, and that’s the Knicks’ defense and Brunson’s execution, not a Spurs collapse. Underrating the bench is another. Anunoby’s 33 points in the Game 4 comeback gets overshadowed by Brunson’s Game 5, but that game doesn’t happen without him. And forgetting the NBA Cup connection matters too, since this wasn’t a random Finals matchup. It was the third meeting between these franchises in one season, and New York won all three.
Expert Tips for Following the Offseason
Watch free agency closely, since a title winning core often faces cap pressure the following summer and the Knicks’ role players will get expensive fast. Track Brunson’s workload in the preseason too. A heavy playoff run at his usage rate is worth monitoring for wear heading into next year. Keep an eye on San Antonio’s timeline as well. A 22 year old led team that pushed the champs to five games is going to be a problem again soon. Speaking of new-look contenders, see how the LeBron James 76ers signing is already shaking up next year’s title odds.
FAQ
Did the Knicks win the 2026 NBA championship? Yes. The New York Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs 4-1 in the 2026 NBA Finals, clinching the Knicks first title since 1973 with a 94-90 win in Game 5 on June 13, 2026.
When was the last time the Knicks won a championship before this? The Knicks’ previous title came in 1973, led by Willis Reed and Walt Frazier, meaning this 2026 championship ended a 53 year drought for the franchise.
Who won Finals MVP in 2026? Jalen Brunson won Finals MVP after scoring 45 points in the series clinching Game 5, the most points ever scored by a Knick in a Finals game.
How did the Knicks beat the Spurs in Game 5? New York overcame a big early deficit behind Brunson’s 45 point performance, closing out the game 94-90 to finish the series 4-1.
Was this a rematch of a previous Finals? Yes. The Knicks and Spurs also met in the 1999 NBA Finals, which San Antonio won in five games for their first championship.
Bottom Line
This wasn’t a talent gap or a blowout series. It was five straight nail biters that New York somehow kept winning. The Knicks first title since 1973 was built the hard way, through continuity, defense, and a franchise player who refused to let five straight double digit deficits become a pattern. Fifty three years is a long time to wait, but based on how deep and defensively sound this roster is, New York doesn’t look like a one and done champion.
