By: Jennifer Portee
6/14/2026
For more than five decades, the New York Knicks were chasing history.
Now, they’ve made it.
The Knicks captured their first NBA championship in 53 years, defeating the San Antonio Spurs 94–90 in Game 5 on Saturday night, closing out the series 4–1 behind a defining performance from Jalen Brunson.
Brunson delivered 45 points setting a franchise record for a Finals game and took over when it mattered most, scoring 13 straight in the fourth quarter to seal it. In a series defined by resilience, the Knicks leaned on their identity one final time: fall behind, stay composed, and respond.
They did it again.
New York trailed by as many as 16 and struggled early, missing 16 of their first 18 shots. San Antonio controlled the pace, led by Victor Wembanyama’s presence in the paint and Dylan Harper’s scoring push. But as the game tightened, the Knicks settled in.
A second-quarter run brought them back within reach, and from there, it became a matter of execution.
Brunson led. The rest followed.
Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart combined for 27 points, delivering timely scoring and defensive grit when it mattered most. Alongside Jalen Brunson, the trio leaned on a championship pedigree built at Villanova where they won it all together bringing that same trust, chemistry, and winning DNA to the NBA stage. Years later, that bond is still showing up in the biggest moments, giving New York the stability it needed to close.
The Spurs had chances late but couldn’t hold off another Knicks run. It was a familiar ending in a series where New York erased double-digit deficits in each of its four wins.
For a franchise that has spent generations searching for this moment, the breakthrough didn’t come easily. It came possession by possession, comeback by comeback, until there was nothing left to prove.
Fifty-three years later, the Knicks are champions again.