A rematch of 1999: It's Spurs vs. Knicks for NBA title, after teams met in NBA Cup final as well

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The last time the New York Knicks made the NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs were the opponent and just happened to have a generational big man talent who was heading to the title round for the first time.

Déjà vu.

Back then for the Spurs, it was Tim Duncan. This time for the Spurs, it's Victor Wembanyama. Here they go again: San Antonio vs. New York is the matchup for the 2026 NBA Finals, a Spurs team looking to return to basketball's mountaintop for the sixth time and a Knicks team looking for its first championship in 53 years.

Game 1 is Wednesday in San Antonio.

It's an appealing matchup for so many reasons — among them, it's a rematch of this season's NBA Cup championship game won by the Knicks. It has appeal of a global capital like New York, it has the international element with a French superstar like Wembanyama and it extends an era of parity the likes of which the league has never before seen.

No matter who wins this series, it'll be the eighth different franchise to win a title in the last eight seasons — extending the longest such stretch in NBA history. Toronto won in 2019, followed by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020, then Milwaukee in 2021, Golden State in 2022, Denver in 2023, Boston in 2024, Oklahoma City last year, and now either New York or San Antonio will be added to that list.

The Spurs' win in Oklahoma City on Saturday night extended another part of the parity puzzle, that being no defending champion has even gotten back to the NBA Finals since Golden State won in 2018 and returned in 2019.

The Knicks are trying to do something not done since the days of Willis Reed, Walt Frazier, Dave DeBusschere, Bill Bradley, Earl Monroe and Phil Jackson — that being, win it all. There have been 17 different franchises (18 if the Thunder and Seattle SuperSonics are considered separately, as some fans prefer) that have celebrated championships since the Knicks last won the title, with the Los Angeles Lakers having won 11 crowns in that span, Boston winning seven, Chicago six and Golden State five.

They're the talk of New York right now, after earning their first finals trip since 1999. The mood was quite different a month ago, when New York trailed Atlanta 2-1 after back-to-back one-point losses in Games 2 and 3 of their first-round series.

New York is 11-0 since, winning almost all those games by blowout. And if the team didn’t hear the negative noise from Round 1, it can’t hear all the effusive praise coming now, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson said.

“When there’s negative things being said about you, it’s important to ignore them,” Brunson said. “When there’s positive things about you, it’s easy to be able to read them to make you feel good. But you can’t do one and not the other. Just block it out as best you can.”

Technically, the teams went 1-1 against each other. New York won two of the three meetings, but the NBA Cup final matchup — essentially an 83rd game in an 82-game season — doesn't count in any league records or statistics.

Both teams won their home game against the other this season. Julian Champagnie made 11 3-pointers and Wembanyama scored 31 points to lead the Spurs to a comeback 134-132 win over New York on Dec. 31. The Knicks pulled away in the fourth to a 114-89 win on March 1 to snap San Antonio's 11-game winning streak, plus won the Cup final in Las Vegas.

As would be expected, the Spurs — who have home-court advantage — are the early favorites to win the series. They were listed with odds of -210 on Saturday night, meaning bettors would to wager $210 to win $100.

The Knicks had odds of +170.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) reacts as he collides with Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jaylin Williams (6) in the second half of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) is covered by Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) and forward Jaylin Williams in the second half of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama and guard Stephon Castle (5) celebrate after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama and guard Stephon Castle (5) celebrate after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama celebrates after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs started the Western Conference finals with a win in Oklahoma City, then ended the series the same way.

The champions are dethroned. Wembanyama and the Spurs are headed to the NBA Finals.

Wembanyama scored 22 points, Julian Champagnie got 18 of his 20 off of 3-pointers and the Spurs beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-103 on Saturday night — bucking heavy odds to win a Game 7 on the road.

“This feeling, I can't explain it,” Wembanyama said. “It's so powerful.”

Stephon Castle scored 16 points and De’Aaron Fox had 15. Dylan Harper added 12 and Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell each finished with 11 for the Spurs, who are headed to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2014.

They will host the New York Knicks in Game 1 on Wednesday night.

“Back in October, we knew we had a chance to be pretty good,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said.

Correction — the Spurs have a chance to be great. Championship-level great.

A huge moment came midway through the fourth, when San Antonio’s Luke Kornet blocked Oklahoma City’s Isaiah Hartenstein at the rim — denying a fast-break score that would have gotten the Thunder within four.

It felt like the last gasp for the Thunder. Kornet played six minutes, missed all three of his shot attempts and finished with only two points, but the block was an epic moment.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 35 points and nine assists, but for the eighth consecutive season the NBA will have a new champion. Cason Wallace scored 17 points, while Jared McCain and Alex Caruso had 12 apiece for the Thunder.

After four straight games that were largely decided going into the fourth quarter — the Thunder led Game 3 by 11, the Spurs led Game 4 by 18, the Thunder led Game 5 by 10 and the Spurs led Game 6 by 26, those leads all holding up with relative ease — this one was different, worthy of a Game 7.

Spurs 80, Thunder 77 was the score going into the fourth, a bit of a back-and-forth contest where the Spurs led by as many as 14 in the first half and then by as many as 11 in the third, only to see the Thunder come roaring back both times.

They pulled away in the fourth again, daring the Thunder to try to come back one more time. The champions — short-handed, with Jalen Williams sidelined with a bad hamstring — just didn't have anything left.

San Antonio won eight of the 12 meetings against the Thunder this season — and in the end, the only matchup that really mattered.

“We want four more,” Wembanyama said. “We're not done.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots against San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) in the second half of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle and guard Dylan Harper (2) celebrate in the second half of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series against the Oklahoma City Thunder Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) shoots against Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jaylin Williams (6) in the second half of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

The San Antonio Spurs reacts as a timeout is called in the second half of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs series against the Oklahoma City Thunder Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives against San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) in the second half of Game 6 in the Western Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series, Thursday, May 28, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama (1) speaks with Stephon Castle (5) on the bench in the second half of Game 6 in the Western Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series, Thursday, May 28, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)