The San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks will meet in the 2026 NBA Finals, marking the first time since 1999 that these franchises have faced off for the championship. The 27-year gap between meetings is the second-longest Finals rematch in league history, trailing only the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors' 58-year separation between 1964 and 2022.
The Spurs won that 1999 series in five games, claiming the first of five titles during the Tim Duncan era. They haven't returned to the Finals since their 2014 championship. The Knicks, meanwhile, haven't been back to the Finals since that loss to San Antonio—and haven't won a title since 1973.
The matchup already has enough history; the job is to keep the reading list shorter than the tension.
Victor Wembanyama will try to become the latest generational big man to lift the Larry O'Brien trophy. Jalen Brunson will attempt to bring glory back to Madison Square Garden for the first time in more than five decades.
The lockout that changed everything
The 1999 Finals almost didn't happen. In the summer of 1998, the NBA's owners locked out players amid contentious labor negotiations that threatened to cancel the entire season. Then-commissioner David Stern warned that if no deal was reached by January 7, 1999, the season would be scrapped entirely. The two sides settled on January 6, barely avoiding disaster.
The season began February 5 and ended May 5, compressed from 82 games to 50. Teams played back-to-back-to-backs with travel. The Knicks, for example, played at home on March 14, on the road in Milwaukee on March 15, and at home on March 16. The basketball was slow and terrible—players were out of shape after the long layoff, and there was almost no time to practice.
Teams averaged 88.9 possessions per game, the fewest in recorded history, and scored 91.6 points per game, by far the fewest in the shot clock era.
Between the CBA agreement and the start of training camp, Michael Jordan announced his second retirement. The Chicago Bulls, who had won three straight titles from 1996-98, were dismantled, and the title race suddenly opened.
The road to the Finals
The Spurs and Utah Jazz finished tied for the best record at 37-13, and Karl Malone won MVP. San Antonio swept through the Western Conference playoffs, beating the Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Lakers, and Portland Trail Blazers.
The Knicks barely made the playoffs as the No. 8 seed, winning six of their final eight games. They upset the No. 1 seed Miami Heat in five games thanks to a last-second jumper by Allan Houston, then swept the Atlanta Hawks and beat the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals. They became the first No. 8 seed to reach the Finals.
Patrick Ewing tore his Achilles tendon in the Eastern Conference Finals and did not play in the Finals. Larry Johnson sprained his MCL in the same series and suited up but was not himself.
Game 1: Spurs 89, Knicks 77
Ahead of the series, Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy said he couldn't find a weakness in the Spurs. "Their losses came on back-to-back games or when they had more travel," Van Gundy said. "There wasn't anything San Antonio didn't do well. That's what I was looking for, some nugget. What there was was no nuggets."
Knicks guard Chris Childs was unfazed. "People can say whatever they want to say. We're here. We're confident in our abilities. I'm glad they're underestimating us. Each series they have, and we won. I don't want them to change their mind and pick us as favorites now."
The Knicks built a six-point lead after the first quarter behind a hot start from Houston. Then they went nearly five minutes without scoring in the second quarter, allowing the Spurs to gain momentum. Late in the half, San Antonio went on a 14-4 run to take an eight-point lead into the break.
The Spurs pushed their advantage to double digits in the third quarter. Twice in the fourth quarter, the Knicks cut the deficit to six points—but never got any closer.
"That's what he does," Tim Duncan said of David Robinson. "He doesn't have to score big amounts for us. On any given night, he can do that. When he goes out and gives us defensive intensity and changes people's shots, it changes the game."
Houston and Latrell Sprewell led the Knicks with 19 points each but shot a combined 16 of 41. Johnson, playing through his knee injury, managed just five points in 21 minutes.
Game 2: Spurs 80, Knicks 67
Houston said the Game 1 defeat made the Knicks "more hungry." Their effort was not in question—but they couldn't solve the Spurs' defense, led by Duncan and Robinson.
With 5:22 left in the first quarter, Duncan scored to put the Spurs ahead, and they never trailed again. It was the lowest-scoring game of the series. The game stayed competitive deep into the second half, in part because of the Spurs' own offensive struggles, but the Knicks couldn't make enough shots.
In the middle of the fourth quarter, Duncan and Robinson led a run to pull San Antonio away for good.
"Good teams win ugly," said Jaren Jackson—father of Utah Jazz forward Jaren Jackson Jr. "It was kind of scary at moments, but we were able to finish it off and just grind it out. It was ugly but it was effective."
Duncan finished with 25 points, 15 rebounds, three assists and four blocks. Robinson added 16 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and five blocks. Together, they held the Knicks to 67 points—tied for their second-fewest of the season—on 32.9% shooting.
The Spurs would win the series in five games, but the rematch had been set. Twenty-seven years later, it's happening again.