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Instant Classics: That’s history right there, you understand?For two hours, the Madison Square Garden magic was dead. The Knicks, whose owner had been bickering with city officials over the previous two days, were down by 29 points, facing two straight finals losses amid what was supposed to be the best home-court advantage in the NBA. The Spurs hit every shot in sight. A 2-2 series heading back to San Antonio felt inevitable. The magic was not actually dead, though. Just dormant. Very dormant, until there were about 10 minutes left in the game.
The Spurs led this game by 27 points at the half and as many as 29 in the third quarter. New York chipped away, which wasn’t a surprise, but the lead was still 20 with 9:33 to play. What ensued was a 32-11 run that will be remembered forever in Knicks — and even NBA — lore.
Jalen Brunson was, of course, steely down the stretch. He scored 36 points in 44 minutes of play and seemed to be the only player on the entire floor in control of his emotions late in this one. But OG Anunoby, already a champion with the Raptors in 2019, will make the poster because of this game-winning tip-in:
