The NBA Hall of Famer believes the Knicks were lucky to win their championship this summer.
Throughout the 2026 NBA Finals, the New York Knicks had multiple memorable moments, especially in the fourth quarter, and the game was close. The Knicks had players like Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby step up in clutch situations and make big shots to help New York win the series.
One key moment in particular was OG Anunoby's tip-in layup in the Knicks' historical Game 4 win, in which they came back from a 29-point deficit in the second half. New York was able to get possession of the ball after Spurs guard De'Aaron Fox's layup to seal the game was blocked by Anunoby.
NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal recently spoke about New York's championship run on his podcast, The Big Podcast, and he believes a lot of luck went into the Knicks' success this summer. More specifically, he pointed to Game 4 as a time when luck was on their side more than ever.
Courtesy of Brad PennerO'Neal believes that if the San Antonio Spurs don't give up that 29-point lead, the series would have looked different. He acknowledged the Knicks' success in the fact that they won 13 out of their last 14 games was brought up by his peers, but he still believes Game 4 is when everything changed.
Does Shaq Have a Point?
It is objectively true that the Knicks had multiple things go their way in the Finals and much of their playoff run. This is also true for any championship team in the NBA in recent memory.
For as many moments where New York pulled through in clutch situations, there were also multiple times in the 2026 playoffs where they controlled the game and looked like the best team in the postseason.
Courtesy of Brett Davis This started when they won their first game of their eventual 13-game winning streak. In Game 6 of the first round against the Atlanta Hawks, they won by 51 points on the road to close out the series.
In Game 4 of the second round against the Philadelphia 76ers, they defeated them 144-114 to close out the series and dominated the entire game. In both closeout games, the Knicks dominated from the perimeter with their three-point shooting, and they also played with a very high pace many teams couldn't keep up with.
Overall, the Knicks got hot as a team at the perfect time, and it worked out for them in the postseason. Jalen Brunson's ability to close out games and the team's ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter set them apart and led them to a championship.
