San Antonio carries a complicated Game 7 history into Oklahoma City, where Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs face their biggest test yet.
Game 7s have not been kind to the San Antonio Spurs. Their all-time record in deciding games is 4-7, a mark that reflects several heartbreaking playoff exits over the years. Saturday night in Oklahoma City offers a chance to add to the win column in one of the biggest Game 7s this franchise has ever played.
The history starts in 1979, the year San Antonio first made real noise in the NBA. The Spurs beat the Philadelphia 76ers 111-108 in Game 7 of the conference semifinals at HemisFair Arena, advancing to the conference finals for the first time in franchise history.
They lost to the Washington Bullets 107-105 on the road in another Game 7 that same postseason. The franchise was young then and still figuring out what it was capable of becoming. It took another two decades before the Spurs fully found the answer.
The most painful loss in franchise history came in 2013 and anyone who watched it does not need the details repeated for long. San Antonio led Miami by five with 28 seconds left in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, but Ray Allen tied the game with a corner three-pointer as the Heat went on to win in overtime. Then came Game 7, a 95-88 Heat win in Miami, with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade celebrating after one of the most brutal endings in Spurs history.
The following year, San Antonio found Miami in the Finals again and beat the Heat in five games to win the championship. The response to that Game 7 loss became one of the most complete Finals performances in league history.
The best Game 7 in franchise history came in 2005, when San Antonio beat Detroit 81-74 to win its third championship. Its most recent Game 7 win came in the 2014 first round, a 119-96 dismantling of the Dallas Mavericks that helped launch the Spurs into the championship run that produced their 2013 redemption.
Victor Wembanyama is the reason Saturday's Game 7 is happening. He posted 28 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in a dominant Game 6 win Thursday night to force the deciding game.
Wembanyama is playing in his first career Game 7, along with 5 other first-timers. Oklahoma City has been here before, as they won two Game 7s in last year’s playoffs on the way to the championship.
Per the NBA, this is the first Game 7 in the Western Conference finals since Golden State beat Houston in 2018. It is also the first Game 7 between the teams with the top two regular-season records since the playoffs expanded to 16 teams in 1983. The stage has never been bigger for this young Spurs team.
San Antonio Spurs Game 7 History
Wins (4)
1979 conference semifinals vs. Philadelphia 76ers, W 111-108
2005 NBA Finals vs. Detroit Pistons, W 81-74
2008 conference semifinals vs. New Orleans Hornets, W 91-82
2014 first round vs. Dallas Mavericks, W 119-96
Losses (7)
1979 conference finals vs. Washington Bullets, L 107-105
1981 conference semifinals vs. Houston Rockets, L 105-100
1990 conference semifinals vs. Portland Trail Blazers, L 108-105 OT
2006 conference semifinals vs. Dallas Mavericks, L 119-111 OT
2013 NBA Finals vs. Miami Heat, L 95-88
2015 first round vs. Los Angeles Clippers, L 111-109
2019 first round vs. Denver Nuggets, L 90-86
