The 2026 NBA Finals begins Wednesday night in San Antonio, and the oddsmakers have installed the Spurs as clear favorites. That assessment overlooks something important: the Knicks actually have more players in the top 10 of this series.
Victor Wembanyama remains the best player in these Finals, and it's not particularly close. His defensive presence warps opposing offenses fundamentally, forcing teams into heavy Jump-shot diets. The Knicks happen to be one of the league's best 3-point shooting teams, because they're going to need every bit of it.
Jalen Brunson is the engine. If New York pulls off this championship—the first since 1973—he'll achieve mythical status in Manhattan. Already, his offensive production is impossible to replace. When Brunson sat during the Cavs series, the Knicks' offense dropped 16 points per 100 possessions. That's not a gap you simply fill in.
The matchup within the matchup
OG Anunoby is the x-factor. He's spent three seasons refining his coverage on Wembanyama, and the results speak for themselves. Anunoby's lower center of gravity and strength allow him to push Wembanyama away from his preferred spots, forcing catches farther from the basket and into contested fadeaways. It's quietly elite work. When not guarding Wembanyama, Anunoby has averaged 20 points and seven rebounds on 57% shooting, including 48% from deep. Those numbers would make him the best player on most teams.
Stephon Castle gives San Antonio its most reliable bucket outside of Wembanyama. He's averaged 18 points in these playoffs with nearly eight assists per game against OKC, adding rebounding and perimeter defense. Castle held Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to 41% shooting in the conference finals—a statistic that speaks for itself.
The big men and the finish
Karl-Anthony Towns has been New York's most consistent big, averaging 19 points and 11 rebounds while shooting 57% from the field and 49% from three. His ability to stretch the floor and pull Wembanyama out of the paint creates driving lanes for everyone else. If Towns stays out of foul trouble, he may well determine whether this series goes New York's way.
Mikal Bridges caught fire at exactly the right time. Over his last nine games, he's averaging just under 19 points on 63% shooting. After hitting 67 of his previous 97 shots, he became the only player in NBA history to average more than 15 points while shooting above 65% overall, at least 50% from three, and 100% from the free-throw line over any seven-game playoff span.
Once you move past the top five, the depth on both rosters makes ranking genuinely difficult. The series could easily go either direction.