The Spurs did it. After starting the season with relatively low expectations, they made the NBA Finals, taking down the reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder, in the process. The odds were against them, but with talent, preparation, and some luck, they will now battle the New York Knicks, hoping to win their sixth title.
San Antonio is favored almost two-to-one in FanDuel to take home the Larry O’Brien trophy, but before we get into the Finals matchup, it’s time to take a look at the huge
win in the Conference Finals. To do that, J.R. Wilco and Jeje Gomez discuss what the series against the Thunder meant and highlight some of the biggest and most memorable plays that got the Spurs back to the biggest stage.
J.R. Wilco: The Finals, my friend. The Finals! I’m on vacation in Colorado at the moment, sitting out on a porch and looking out at one of my favorite views in the world: some of the foothills at the edge of the San Juan Mountains, not too far from Castle Rock (one of the most significant archaeoastronomical sites in North America, but that’s a topic for another time).
About six hours after the Spurs punched their ticket to the Finals, we woke up to get in the car to come up here from Austin. Being here in one of my favorite places on the planet resonates with San Antonio’s achievement of getting past OKC by climbing past the lack of experience with a first year coach and a 22 year old team leader, taking on the reigning champs (complete with MVP) in a seventh game on the road and getting ready to play the Knicks just like a 22 year old Tim Duncan did 27 years ago.
What a trip it was to get there, since about eight months ago Victor Wembanyama created a headline by stating his expectation that San Antonio would skip the play-in and snag the 6th seed in the west. High expectations for a team that hadn’t seen the postseason since 2019, but you could honestly get vertigo from peeking down at the 6 seed from the lookout point the Spurs have reached on their climb prior to their last ascent to the peak of the Larry O!
You and I have had so many conversations this year around the topic of our discontent with San Antonio’s offense, but I could argue that it was the adjustments that the coaching staff implemented, not only on defense but on offense, that weren’t just impressive in keeping the Thunder off balance but allowed them to find the cracks through which they could score.
Just consider the Game 6 approach of having Wemby drag iHart out to the three-point line and putting him in actions that neutralized his physicality. Then compare that to the Game 7 design, which went back to so many plays from mid-season (that OKC had forced the Spurs offense away from since early in the series) with Victor using his gravity in hard rolling to rim to set up deep shooting and secondary offense to take advantage of a Thunder defense in rotation.
5. Wemby draws all the attention, and KJ benefits
It’s the kind of sophisticated approach that I wasn’t sure the team could develop, and when I consider the youth of the squad that executed it, I feel myself going beyond mere acknowledgement into full-on celebration. How about you: what stood out from the last seven games — particularly the last two they won while facing elimination?
Jesus Gomez: I remember back in the day when your vacations used to routinely overlap with some deep playoff runs. That wasn’t an issue in the last few years, but it’s great to see the return of a tradition that will likely continue for a decade, at least.
I did think back to our discussions about the offense during Game 6 and Game 7, and I think this series, in general, showcased that sometimes, you don’t need overly complex sets when you have incredible talent. You mentioned the adjustments and the shifting strategies, and Mitch Johnson does deserve credit for that. But the best thing he might have done was put the game in the hands of the players.
The fetishisation of Xs and Os, of which I’m definitely guilty, often overshadows how fun it is to see a player just get a bucket and how sometimes the best coaching consists of simply putting that player in a good position to do so. While we were bemoaning the lack of set plays that offered multiple options, the staff was probably thinking that their guys would be fine with just a simple cross-screen or pindown, and they were proven right. I disagree with you on it being a sophisticated approach, but sometimes you don’t need sophistication, and insisting upon it is foolish. Make sure to remind me of that when I inevitably start complaining again during the Finals.
Enough about strategy. What impressed me the most about the last two games, in particular, was the aggressiveness the team showed. It’s not that I was expecting them to shy away from the moment, but it was a long series against a physical opponent. The bench had been bad. I kept fearing we’d run into a moment in which they just couldn’t keep up with the energy level, but it never happened. I guess that’s the good thing about young teams.
And speaking of youth, how impressed were you with the young guards? Castle bounced back from two high-turnover games like a veteran, and maybe I’m still riding the high from Game 7, but Dylan Harper looked Manuesque in the way he made the play the team needed. I’m not saying we have a Shabazz Muhammad situation in our hands, but they don’t act like we normally expect guys their age to act to me.
J.R.: You can count on me to remind you of this conversation the moment you start griping again, and we can agree to disagree (won’t be the first time) about the strategy piece.
The team showed elite aggression, and I agree that it was extremely impressive. When I see an aggressive team, I think about the confidence that’s required to maintain that kind of approach. That this team is as sure of themselves as they are is a credit to the whole organization; that they’re this confident while being so young is the product of … genetics? The foolhardiness of youth? That their aggressive confidence hasn’t written checks their talent and preparation couldn’t cash is either a function of the team’s cohesiveness or of dumb luck the degree to which this league has never seen. Or it could just mean that they have the NBA’s only alien playing for them.
And I’m beyond impressed with the young guards. Castle is an untamed bronco that’s never seen a creek bed he couldn’t jump across. While his toughness and his will are unquestionable, it’s his decision-making that’s easy to sometimes second-guess. But as his ability to read defenses catches up to his grit, he’s displayed a level of calm under pressure that’s sustaining him in the midst of his education. I’m stunned that he’s able to play at such a high level while undergoing on-the-job training in an environment as intense as the WCF. I can’t say enough good things about him.
But when it comes to Harper, I’m concerned about my ability to capture it all in words. It’s like, how can any rookie be so good?! He plays at his own pace, which is great, but he also sometimes enforces his pace on the action. As a rookie. He drives with the assurance of a 10-year veteran, and he took Lu Dort all the way to the basket, shrugging him off like he was Trae Young before simply laying the ball in the hoop. As a rookie! He’s got the best post moves of any Spur since Boris Diaw’s Cream Shake, you know the one where Boris would start with his back to the basket 18 feet from the rim and make four or five post moves and somehow end up 3 feet from the rim? Dylan does that too, as (say it with me) a rookie! And I haven’t even discussed his remarkable defense that has one of the best analysts on YouTube in awe.
But the biggest thing for me is the way he has been able to do something that no one but Manu Ginóbili did as regularly for the Spurs: repeatedly be in the right place at the right time to make the right play to turn a game from defeat to victory. During the game, I was texting with Gary Quan, who almost has as big a crush on Manu as you and I do. During the third quarter, we were remarking about how well Dylan was playing and how far beyond his years his game looked. I told him I was reminded of an early postseason series in 2003 and a rebound that Ginóbili made on the baseline that saved the game for the Spurs. Not 15 minutes later, Harper made not one but two separate baseline rebounds and put one of them back in for two points. He’s a gem beyond value right now and he’s only going to get better.
4. Dylan Harper’s huge offensive rebound
What’s your main takeaway from a WCF that seems prepped to be a recurring matchup for years to come?
Jeje: Now I’m officially concerned because too many of us see some Manu in Harper. Are we setting him up to fail, because few players have ever been as good as Manu? Wait, this is a time for celebration. There will be years to worry about that, so I’ll leave it alone for now.
I don’t know if I have a main takeaway involving OKC, because it’s hard to say much about a team missing their second-best player for six games, but I have a few about the league. The first one is that title windows are not as long as people think in today’s NBA, and “who can stop this team?” takes should be used more sparingly. A Thunder repeat seemed inevitable at one point and the ascension of the Spurs and some bad injury luck stopped that in its tracks. So, as I watch a San Antonio core that should keep the franchise as the best in the West or, at worst, the second-best team in the conference for the foreseeable future, I still remain cautious and in the moment. As far as I’m concerned, this is their title chance. You will not hear any “playing with house money” comments from me.
Second, I’ll go back to the season preview and reiterate how much fun it is to have great expectations. Back then, a playoff berth was all most of us thought the Spurs should get, but as the season progressed and it was clear they were much better than I estimated, the more invested I became in their success. I don’t begrudge the “ahead of schedule” crowd for trying to lower the stakes for a young team with an inexperienced coach and a front office that didn’t go all in, but I personally would rather get my heart broken by a team I overrate than be pleasantly surprised by overachievement. And while I picked the Thunder to win, I have believed for a while that this team was a true contender.
Finally, we have to address the giraffe in the room. It’s surprising we’ve gotten this far without gushing about Wembanyama, and particularly his defense. He faced Rudy Gobert and Chet Holmgren, widely considered the two best defenders behind Wemby, and their impact didn’t come close to matching The Alien’s. What we’ve seen so far feels special. Overloading the side SGA operated in was smart, as was trapping him, at least for a while, but Wembanyama is the reason the Thunder couldn’t score like they normally do.
The fact that he appears to be a fantastic leader and a burgeoning elite offensive player on top of it seems almost unfair. How can a 7’5 center start Game 7 as the point guard and make it work? I didn’t think he could do anything that would surprise me anymore, but the moment Wemby faced help defense on a drive and found the open man did the trick.
3. Point Wemby finds the open man
But how about you? Did you have any major takeaways about the matchup in particular? And is there anything we haven’t discussed that you think deserves at least a mention?
J.R.:I guess my first takeaway is to echo what I think I heard Zach Lowe say, and that’s how this series will be remembered years from now, is largely going to be due to the phenomenal Game 1 and the excellent Game 7. People will be looking at the box scores for games two through six and shrugging their shoulders. I mean, the ground is largely prepped for a takedown of the series in 15 years by some 20-year-old YouTuber who’s just graduated from kindergarten. He’ll be ranting about how you can’t call the 2026 Western Conference finals one of the great series in NBA history because five of the seven games were practically blowouts. And that’s fine. I have zero problems with anyone who thinks this series shouldn’t mean as much as people say it did because if they haven’t lived through it, then they won’t realize how deadly the Thunder were for the last three years and how everyone assumed that they would be “the team that everyone’s aiming for“ and how big a deal it was that anyone was able to upset them.
My second takeaway is an odd one, but I have to go on record to say I really feel for Chet Holmgren. We are basketball fans, sure, but we are people first, and Chet is a person. Falling short in the public eye to the extent he did is not something I would wish on anyone. It’s so human, though, and you’ve got to feel for him. First, he didn’t ask to be in Wemby’s sights. It’s not his fault he was given the trophy all those years ago when Wemby wasn’t.
Second, we’ve all been there. Failure is more common than success. In fact, Chet is way more relatable than Victor because most of us aren’t the best in the world at something that happens publicly. And it’s way more frequent that you want to accomplish something and get sat down in the middle of it. Third, I’ve suspected for a while that Wemby was in his head, but I wasn’t sure until the end of the third quarter of Game 6. That’s the play where Vic blocked Holmgren’s buzzer-beating attempt on Thursday.
2. Wemby demoralizes Chet
Chet just sat on the floor afterwards like “yup, that’s what happens to me” instead of popping up as most athletes do. I feel for the guy, and as long as it doesn’t cost the Spurs a title in the future, I’d like for him to regain his mojo.
Third Takeaway: Isn’t it ridiculous that it’s practically impossible to quantify just how quickly the Spurs have learned? As much as it’s been a talking point in San Antonio that experience isn’t necessary, that’s just a reaction to the fact that people were using the lack of experience to disqualify the Spurs from being able to go all the way. Well, here they are as the champs of the West. There’s no disputing that. So we don’t need to pretend that experience doesn’t matter, because it absolutely does. It’s just that this team, as it’s constructed with its coaching staff and players, can learn on the fly (i.e., accumulate experience) faster than any other team I’ve ever rooted for. This is the kind of thing I’ve never seen before, which I guess makes sense because the last time a younger team has made it to the finals was 1977!
Takeaway number four is the play that I will always call the Kornet Contest. It’s no longer in my mind a thing that he does to throw off three-point shooters. It’s the chase-down block that turned away Hartenstein, preserved the lead, and probably the game.
1. Luke Kornet blocks Hartenstein
It’s such an impressive play that he got there at all, but also because he didn’t try to block the dunk. He just contested and let Isaiah push the ball right into his hand. Such an amazing play! I’ve loved Kornet ever since he came to San Antonio, and I can’t be more excited that the play of the game that clinched the series was made by the guy so many were ragging on for essentially not being Victor Wembanyama. By my account, that’s the second game this season he’s saved with a block, and I might as well add that he blocked the Atlanta Hawks from making a bad decision with that promotion they were going to do until he wrote a blog post. Keep up the good work, Luke. You’re all right in my book.
Final takeaway: Would anyone object to giving a Co-MVP award to the Corgi?
Jeje: Not me!
