The championship opens Wednesday night in San Antonio, and the matchup between the Spurs and the Knicks has the feel of a series that could go very far. Both rosters match up cleanly, so Game 1 becomes a textbook chess match between coaches Mike Brown and Mitch Johnson — each trying to find the first move that flips the board. A fair number of observers, this one included, expect it to stretch to a seventh game.
What makes this interesting is that the series is being sold as a clash of big men, yet its outcome may hinge on a rookie’s three‑point shot.
The matchup already has enough history; the job is to keep the reading list shorter than the tension.
Wemby’s Inside Drive
Victor Wembanyama’s postseason impact has been almost binary: when he got to the rim, San Antonio won; when he stayed on the perimeter, they lost. He still lacks a reliable go‑to scoring move and tends to drift toward three‑point attempts, even looking like he’s playing on a Nerf hoop. Without the strength to back his defender down, his best path is to push the tempo and catch the ball on the move, close to the rim. He’ll also have to knock down threes — otherwise New York will simply dare him to shoot and the driving lanes will vanish.
Mitch Johnson’s