trust Fox – San Antonio’s offense stalled in the final stretch of Game 2 of the 2026 NBA Finals, and the club’s stars paid the price. After Wembanyama’s late work and a 95-94 lead, the Spurs went scoreless for the final 2:16 of the loss. The path forward, the Spurs insist
When the clock finally slipped inside 2:16 in Game 2 of the 2026 NBA Finals, everything about the Spurs changed.
San Antonio had leaned on Victor Wembanyama’s physical brilliance—most memorably an uber-physical and-1 over Karl-Anthony Towns with 3:24 left. Then, a little more than a minute later, Wembanyama converted two free throws to give the Spurs a 95-94 lead. It should have been the start of the ending.
Instead, the Spurs didn’t score again. They fell 105-95, and the final stretch became a simple, painful line: 0 points in the last 2:16.
The season-long story of Spurs ball movement didn’t just slow down—it ground to a halt in the fourth quarter. Wembanyama kept trying to challenge the Knicks’ loaded-up defense. but New York’s late-game coverage was different from the looks the Spurs had been getting earlier. Part of the problem was that San Antonio couldn’t get out in transition the way it had in the first half. The fourth quarter also demanded things the Spurs didn’t have as consistently: more trips into the paint from De’Aaron Fox. more of the rookie Dylan Harper’s poise around the basket.
Wembanyama could still produce incredible moments, but the Spurs needed their offense initiated in a way that kept the Knicks from setting their feet.
It also wasn’t an isolated breakdown from this one game.
In Game 1, San Antonio scored 27 points in the first 10 and a half minutes. The final rhythm lasted 37:30. After that opening surge, the Spurs managed just 68 points for the rest of the game. And again. the late stretch didn’t play out how fans wanted: San Antonio sat Harper on the bench down the stretch. subbing out of the game for good with 4:04 left in the fourth in favor of Devin Vassell.
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson addressed that decision Thursday with blunt clarity.
“Dylan did not finish the game by nothing he did or did not do,” Johnson said. “It was a decision I made. I understand that there would be logic in having Dylan in that group. I thought that group that was out there did some things during that stretch, and that’s what I rolled with.”
That choice doesn’t suggest Harper can’t be trusted. If anything, it shows the Spurs are repeatedly testing what their crunch-time lineups can look like. During the postseason, the Spurs have played Harper, Stephon Castle, and Fox together in crunch-time lineups. So the idea of giving the ball to Harper or Fox down the stretch isn’t a radical reinvention—it’s part of what San Antonio already has experimented with.
Harper himself acknowledged how much everyone wants those closing minutes.
“I feel like everyone wants to be out there in those times and close the game out,” Harper said Thursday. “But, I mean, we won 62 games, we made it this far. So I’m going to keep on trusting the coaching staff. trusting Mitch. and just having that trust that they know what’s best for the team. And if they think that’s the best thing for the team and helps us win the most. then I’m all for it.”.
The Spurs’ wider problem in New York wasn’t just that points dried up. Their passing rhythm did, and that mattered because the Knicks’ defense doesn’t have to chase if the ball stays still.
This season, San Antonio ranked in the top 10 in assists per game, averaging more than 28. Through the first three rounds of the playoffs, the Spurs still distributed more than 25 dimes per contest. In Game 1 against New York, that number plummeted to 16. The ball didn’t move, and when it didn’t, the Knicks didn’t either.
Allowing defenders like Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Mikal Bridges free rein to rake at drivers or on post-ups is the kind of comfort teams punish. In that atmosphere, defenders can press without consequence because there’s no reason to rotate.
Stephon Castle, speaking after Game 1, tied it to matchups and the advantage the Spurs are trying to manufacture.
“You have to have a feel for it and see who’s got it going. who’s got the rhythm. ” Castle said after Game 1. “Matchups are definitely important, too. That’s why it’s always beneficial when a couple of us are out there together. Vic creates advantages whether he’s on the ball or off the ball. so (we’re) just really trying to make the right play for the possession.”.
The Spurs also learned something concrete earlier in the postseason.
In the Western Conference finals series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. San Antonio’s turnover hemorrhage in the first two games slowed dramatically after Fox returned from the high ankle sprain he suffered against the Timberwolves in the second round. Fox still struggled shooting in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. going 3-of-13 from the floor on Wednesday. but the misses weren’t just about effort—they were shots Fox normally makes.
That’s why the Spurs keep circling back to the idea of letting Harper and Fox dictate the terms of possessions—through their ballhandling. their size. and the way they force defenses to respond. The goal is simple and brutal: make New York slide their feet through multiple rotations. then bring Wembanyama into the picture where his length can take over on the move.
Wembanyama thrives when the space opens toward the basket.
The Spurs were only 6-of-21 from the floor in the fourth quarter in Game 2. They were 2-of-10 on 3s, and they committed five turnovers.
Fox put a framework on it Thursday.
“There is a balance to it,” Fox said Thursday. “But for us. when we have ball movement. getting the defense to rotate. it naturally comes back to the guys that it’s supposed to come back to. We’re not necessarily thinking. obviously. unless Vic’s like. ‘I want the ball. ’ or he’s getting to a spot and he’s demanding the ball. Other than that, we have a pretty free-flowing offense, where paint touches are key. And then when we get the defense moving, Vic gets easy shots. He doesn’t have to go one-on-one or have to fight the physicality the whole time. That, or Dylan gets a layup. Or Dev gets a 3.”.
Even a good shot isn’t automatically good if the defense closes out clean.
The Spurs’ method isn’t about one pass or one look. It’s about denying the Knicks time to predict and react. If New York can close out easily on a shooter—whether it’s a corner 3 or anything else—then the possession ends the moment the Spurs release the ball.
Julian Champagnie described the principle in the kind of plain language coaches wish every possession would follow.
“The defense isn’t moving when that happens,” Champagnie said. “We want to get the defense in rotations. That’s how you end up getting open 3s, and then you get to drive and make a read. And that’s kind of where the best 3s come from.”
In San Antonio, it’s understood that this team goes as Wembanyama goes. That won’t change because the stage is bigger or because the opponent hasn’t lost in a month. The difference is that the stakes are higher—so the margin for letting New York sit comfortably on a set defense is smaller.
For the Spurs to win what’s coming next, they’ll have to do something they know how to do. Get the ball moving. And down the stretch, trust that Harper and Fox are the ones who can start the offense the way San Antonio needs it started—so Wembanyama can finish it the way only he can.
Spurs Knicks 2026 NBA Finals Victor Wembanyama De’Aaron Fox Dylan Harper ball movement late game offense