The San Antonio Spurs are looking to get a game back against the New York Knicks in Game 2 on Friday, and they seem to have identified their biggest struggle.
The San Antonio Spurs are looking to even up the NBA Finals in Game 2, after dropping Game 1 to the New York Knicks, 105-95, on Wednesday. In that game, Victor Wembanyama was inefficient, De'Aaron Fox was a non-factor, and the Spurs shot a putrid 25 percent from 3-point range.
On to the next, that's really all that can be said!
For the Spurs, Game 1 was a perfect storm of collapse. Not only did the Knicks successfully limit Wembanyama, but the rest of the supporting cast was unable to step up in a meaningful way.
After averaging 28 assists per game in the regular season, the Spurs dished only 16 dimes in Game 1. If they want to turn the ship around, they know that they have to be crisp and quick to make decisions with the ball.
Spurs Aim to Force Knicks to Run
During the Spurs' last Finals run, back in 2014, their mantra was "you can't outrun the basketball." Their Beautiful Game playstyle simply made it impossible for the Miami Heat to keep up with them.
The same is true in 2026. Now, the Spurs just have to be quick to move the ball around the perimeter, getting the Knicks out of position. From there, they just need to knock down shots.
"When we have the ball moving, and we get the defense to rotate, it naturally comes back to the guys that it's supposed to come back to," Fox explained. "We have a pretty free-flowing offense where paint touches are key. And then when we get the defense moving, Vic gets easy shots. He doesn't have to go one-on-one or have to fight through physicality the whole time. That or Dylan gets a layup, or Dev gets a 3. We have such a free-flowing offense that those things happen, and the person that the ball's supposed to find, it finds."
The Spurs, like most teams, prefer to play out in transition, but in set plays, that's not really a luxury they get. On defense, it's about turning quick stops into offense. In the half-court, it's more about being clean with it and getting an open look every time.
"I think once you get in the half court, it's more just how you put the right guys in the right spots to execute," added Dylan Harper. "And I feel like yesterday we could have done a better job."
