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The New York Knicks are NBA champions for the first time in 53 years. The Knicks clinched their first championship since 1973 with a 94-90 win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals on Saturday night. Jalen Brunson, who was named the Finals MVP, scored a series-high 45 points in the closeout win. He hit a go-ahead floater with 65 seconds left in Game 5.
The Knicks, who completed the largest comeback in NBA Finals history in Game 4 on Wednesday night as they erased a 29-point deficit, once again came from behind in Game 5. New York trailed by as many as 16 in the game and was down by 10 with eight minutes left before making a late push.
Brunson's 45 points are the most by a Knick in a Finals game. He scored them on 14-for-27 shooting and hit 13 of his 15 free throws. The rest of the Knicks scored 49 points on 17-for-60 (28.3%) shooting. Brunson's 45 points are tied for the third-most in a Finals closeout game with Michael Jordan. Only Giannis Antetokounmpo (50) and Bob Pettit (50) have had more in such an occasion.
"I got no words," Brunson told the ABC broadcast with tears in his eyes after the game. "...Whenever someone counted us out, we found a way to come back and do something about it."
Victor Wembanyama was a force defensively in Game 5, especially in the first half when the Spurs held the Knicks to 37 points. Wembanyama had five blocks and grabbed 14 rebounds, but he scored just 19 points on 17 shots.
Brunson named Finals MVP after historic Game 5 performance
Jalen Brunson had a frustrating start to the series. The Spurs' big, physical perimeter defenders did a terrific job making life difficult for him, and while he came up with huge plays down the stretch in both Games 1 and 2, he had 82 points on 81 shots and as many turnovers (13) as assists in the first three games.
In the second half of Game 4, however, Brunson started to find a rhythm as he led the Knicks' historic comeback. He carried that momentum into Game 5, and put the Knicks on his back with the most important performance of his career.
Brunson finished with 45 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals, hitting four of his seven 3-point attempts and scoring the go-ahead bucket with 1:05 remaining. His 45 points were a Knicks Finals record, and tied for the third-most in a Finals closeout game.
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Giannis Antetokounmpo | Bucks | 2021 | 50 |
Bob Pettit | Hawks | 1958 | 50 |
Jalen Brunson | Knicks | 2026 | 45 |
Michael Jordan | Bulls | 1998 | 45 |
Magic Johnson | Lakers | 1980 | 42 |
Brunson, who scored or assisted on 17 of the Knicks' 31 field goals, nearly matched the Spurs by himself in the fourth quarter. He scored 15 of his 45 points in the fourth to complete the Knicks' comeback, while the Spurs as a team managed just 18 on 7 of 22 shooting.
There was a debate to be had about Finals MVP entering Game 4, but Brunson ended it with his stunning showing. Brunson joins Willis Reed as the only players in Knicks history to earn the honor. Reed was named Finals MVP in both 1970 and 1973 -- the only other titles in franchise history.
Knicks complete all-time playoff run
It's hard to believe that the Knicks were on the ropes in the first round against the Atlanta Hawks, who were up 2-1 in that series and had Game 4 at home. The Knicks won that game by 16 and never looked back. In fact, they lost more games to the Hawks than they did in the next three series combined.
The Knicks closed the playoffs on a 15-1 run, and their three overall defeats were tied for the second fewest in a postseason since the NBA moved to a best-of-seven format in all playoff rounds in 2003. Only the vaunted 2017 Golden State Warriors, with Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, had fewer defeats en route to a title.
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Warriors | 2017 | 16-1 |
Knicks | 2026 | 16-3 |
Celtics | 2024 | 16-3 |
The Knicks finished with a 119.9 offensive rating, 104.5 defensive rating and a +15.4 net rating in the playoffs, all of which ranked first. Data on the NBA's stats site goes back to 1997, which was the start of the play-by-play era. In that time, no champion had a better net rating.
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Knicks | 2026 | +15.4 |
Lakers | 2001 | +13.4 |
Warriors | 2017 | +12.9 |
Spurs | 2014 | +10.4 |
The Knicks had a 51-point win, four 30-point wins and 12 double-digit wins, and their three defeats were by a combined six points. They also went 9-1 on the road to tie the 1995 Houston Rockets for the most road wins in a postseason by a champion.
Time will tell how the Knicks will be remembered, but statistically, this was one of the best playoff runs we've ever seen.
Knicks end 53-year title drought
The Knicks' last title came back in 1973, when that incredible team led by Walt "Clyde" Frazier, Willis Reed, Bill Bradley, Earl Monroe and Dave DeBusschere beat Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West and the Los Angeles Lakers in a narrow five-game series. All five games of that matchup were decided by single digits, and four by five or fewer points.
Is Jalen Brunson the greatest Knicks player of all time? Making his case after ending 53-year title drought
Sam Quinn
It was fitting, then, that the Knicks ended their 53-year title drought with a similar series. They won Game 1 by 10, but only due to a few unnecessary free throws in the final seconds, and every other game was decided by five or fewer. The Knicks won both Games 2 and 4 by a single point.
There has never been a longer gap between titles in NBA history.
The Knicks had suffered through a lot of misery over the last five decades. They had only made the playoffs 29 times and won just 26 playoff series. They did make the Finals twice, in 1994 and 1999, but lost on both occasions.
"I've said this, I've thought about it even before I got the job. There are a couple of franchises that are pretty iconic just because of the history that they have, the location that they're in, sometimes even the building that they're in. New York is definitely one of the few that you could say that to in all three facets," Knicks coach Mike Brown said.
"Everybody goes through their ups and downs. I don't really think much about the tough times that they had, because everybody has tough times, including individuals. You just want to try the best you can to be a part of whatever you can to bring joy to the city, to the organization."
The Knicks are now also off the unfortunate list of title droughts. Entering the season they had ranked fifth.
Longest active title droughts in the NBA
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Kings | 1951 | 75 years |
Hawks | 1958 | 68 years |
Suns | Never | 58 years |
Clippers | Never | 56 years |
Jazz | Never | 52 years |
