Spurs Blow 29-Point Lead in 107-106 Finals Loss as Barkley Rips 8 Straight 3s

Q: Does this 29-point comeback prove that no lead is ever safe in the modern NBA?

Yes—this comeback is powerful evidence that in the modern NBA, even huge leads are far less secure than they once seemed, though it does not mean every lead is meaningless. The Knicks’ 29-point rally in Game 4 was not just dramatic; it was historic. It was the largest comeback in NBA Finals history, turning a 76-49 halftime deficit into a 107-106 win and a 3-1 series lead. San Antonio’s collapse showed how quickly games can flip when a team built its advantage on three-point shooting and then goes cold. The Spurs made a Finals-record 14 threes in the first half, then shot 3-for-17 from deep after halftime and were outscored 58-30. That volatility is central to the modern NBA. Teams now take threes at unprecedented volume, which creates more scoring swings in shorter stretches. A club trailing by 20 or more can erase that gap quickly with a hot run, especially if the leading team keeps settling for low-quality jumpers or loses composure, as Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal argued San Antonio did. The Knicks also had the kind of late-game shot creation that makes comebacks more realistic. Jalen Brunson’s scoring and OG Anunoby’s winner capped a rally driven by elite crunch-time offense, defensive pressure and a momentum-changing flagrant foul sequence. Still, “no lead is ever safe” should be treated as a warning, not a literal rule. Big leads still usually hold. But this Finals collapse underlines that in today’s NBA, no lead is safe enough to relax.

Q: Was the Spurs' historic collapse a result of choking or a brilliant Knicks tactical masterclass?

It was both, but more choking by San Antonio than a pure tactical masterclass by New York. The Spurs’ collapse was too extreme to explain only through Knicks adjustments. San Antonio led 76-49 at halftime after a record 14 first-half threes, then scored just 30 points after the break and went 3-for-17 from deep. They missed nine threes in the third quarter alone, failed to manage tempo, and made costly late-game mistakes, including poor shot selection, missed free throws, and a failure to box out OG Anunoby on the winning tip-in. Even Spurs figures acknowledged it: Victor Wembanyama said they “weren’t the most hungry in the second half,” and Keldon Johnson admitted, “We gave this one up.” At the same time, the Knicks deserve major credit for turning Spurs errors into a historic win. New York increased its physicality without fouling, tightened its defensive execution, and kept attacking after trailing by 29. Coach Mike Brown said the Knicks did not radically change schemes so much as execute harder and longer. That showed in the numbers: New York outscored San Antonio 58-30 in the second half. Jalen Brunson’s 36 points, Anunoby’s 33, and the momentum swing after Wembanyama’s flagrant foul on Karl-Anthony Towns were central to the comeback. So this was not simply one team choking or the other producing a tactical masterpiece. It was a self-inflicted Spurs collapse amplified by a relentless, disciplined Knicks response.

3 articles · Updated · New York Post · Jun 11

New York erased a 29-point deficit to beat San Antonio 107-106 in Game 4, moving within one win of the NBA title at 3-1.
30 second-half points doomed the Spurs after they led 76-49 at halftime, with Barkley saying their eight straight 3-point attempts barely used clock and handed the Knicks the game.
De'Aaron Fox drew particular criticism for attacking the rim instead of pulling the ball out to force a foul, a sequence that ended with OG Anunoby's block and another Knicks chance.
Charles Barkley called San Antonio the "dumbest basketball team" he had seen, while Shaquille O'Neal said the Spurs got comfortable with the lead before Game 5 on Saturday in San Antonio.