The New York Knicks are NBA Cup champions, and they earned it the hard way; by turning a close game into a statement when the lights got brightest.
New York beat the San Antonio Spurs 124–113 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to win the NBA Cup championship, then slammed the door with a decisive final period, outscoring San Antonio 35–19 in the fourth quarter.
The Knicks’ closing burst flipped a game that had swung toward San Antonio in the third quarter. New York responded with pace, and shot-making, leaning on OG Anunoby’s 28 points and Jalen Brunson’s 25 points and eight assists, with Brunson ultimately taking home NBA Cup MVP honors.
San Antonio, after stunning the Oklahoma City Thunder to reach the final, couldn’t match New York’s physicality and execution late. Victor Wembanyama, still working back from a recent injury and on a minutes limit, scored 18 points, while the Spurs’ offense bogged down in the fourth as the Knicks’ pressure and rebounding took over.
In a tournament built to reward urgency, the Knicks had the cleanest five-minute stretch of the night. And when the fourth quarter arrived, New York played like a team that came to Vegas for hardware, not headlines.
