Victor Wembanyama did not search for excuses after the San Antonio Spurs suffered one of the most painful losses in franchise history Wednesday night.
Following the Spurs’ 107-106 defeat to the New York Knicks in Game 4 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden, Wembanyama pointed directly to his team’s second-half performance after San Antonio squandered a 29-point lead and fell behind 3-1 in the series.
“I think it began before that third,” Wembanyama said when asked how the game unraveled. “Can’t really explain it right now. I don’t know. I think it’s just execution, greediness, some sort. We clearly weren’t the most hungry in the second half.”
The loss came on OG Anunoby’s tip-in with 1.2 seconds remaining, completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history. New York outscored San Antonio 58-30 in the second half after trailing by 27 at halftime and by as many as 29 in the third quarter.
Wembanyama finished with 24 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks but shot 9-for-25 from the field. He also missed two critical free throws with 1:47 remaining and the Spurs leading 104-103.
Asked what was going through his mind on those attempts, the 22-year-old remained composed.
“What was going through my mind? I mean, same thing as always. It’s just a shot,” Wembanyama said. “You might work on your form hours and hours. At the end of the day, it’s just a shot. So, you need to shoot it the normal way.”
The Spurs scored 76 points in the first half but managed only 30 after halftime. Wembanyama offered a simple explanation for the offensive collapse.
“Stopped moving the ball, stopped executing.”
The defeat left San Antonio facing elimination despite entering the night in complete control. Wembanyama described the atmosphere afterward as painful.
“I don’t know about the emotions but it was painful of course,” he said. “It feels like we missing, we work too hard and give up our leads. You know, just as simple as that. It just hurts.”
Despite the setback, Wembanyama expressed confidence that the Spurs can respond correctly before Game 5 in San Antonio.
“What’s going through my mind right now? I think it’s going to go one of two ways. A bad one and a good one,” Wembanyama said. “And I know the bad one would be giving up. The good one would be getting stronger through this, getting more together. And I know this is what we’re going to do.”
The Spurs star also outlined what he believes is necessary to avoid letting the loss define their season.
“Holding each other accountable, communicating, not pointing fingers,” Wembanyama said. “After that, we either got it or we don’t, but we’ve proven that we can surpass these difficulties.”
He added: “Even though we haven’t been there before, I’m convinced we’re built this way and we’re going to use the better of this and it’s going to tighten us up.”
San Antonio now returns home needing three consecutive victories to capture its first NBA championship since 2014. Only one team, the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, has ever overcome a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals.
