Charles Barkley did not hold back. Moments after the New York Knicks completed the largest fourth-quarter comeback in NBA Finals history at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night, erasing a 24-point deficit to beat the San Antonio Spurs 118-114 and move 3-1 ahead in the series, the TNT analyst labelled Gregg Popovich’s side “the dumbest basketball team in the history of civilisation”. The Spurs, who had led by 17 at half-time and by as many as 24 with 9:42 remaining in the third quarter, are now one defeat away from surrendering a championship they appeared to have wrapped up by the All-Star break.
Jalen Brunson scored 21 of his 38 points in the final quarter, Karl-Anthony Towns added 14 of his 27 after the third-quarter buzzer, and OG Anunoby’s corner three with 11 seconds remaining gave New York their first lead of the night. Victor Wembanyama, who finished with 32 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks, fouled out with 1:48 to play after a contested drive on Mitchell Robinson — his sixth personal of the night and the third in a span of four San Antonio possessions in which the Spurs failed to advance the ball past half-court inside eight seconds.
Barkley’s verdict and the numbers behind it
Speaking on Inside the NBA, Barkley pointed to the closing stretch as evidence of collapse rather than misfortune. “I’ve been doing this 25 years. I have never, ever seen a team give a game away like that,” he said. “Up 24, the ball, the rim, the crowd silenced — and they turn it over on six straight possessions in the fourth quarter. The dumbest basketball team in the history of civilisation. Write it down.”
The statistical picture supports the indignation, even if the language does not. San Antonio committed 11 fourth-quarter turnovers, the most by any team in a single Finals quarter since the play-by-play era began in 1996. They attempted only two free throws after the eight-minute mark, settled for seven three-pointers in the final six minutes — making one — and were outscored 41-17 in the period. Chris Paul, starting in place of the injured De’Aaron Fox, recorded four of those turnovers and missed all three of his fourth-quarter shot attempts.
- Knicks’ 24-point comeback is the largest in NBA Finals history, surpassing Cleveland’s 25-point swing across Game 1 of 2016 (technically a 25-point deficit, but only 22 inside a single half)
- San Antonio’s 17 fourth-quarter points are the fewest by any Finals team since Detroit’s 16 against San Antonio in Game 7 of 2005
- Wembanyama is the first player to record 30+ points, 14+ rebounds and seven blocks in a Finals loss since Hakeem Olajuwon in 1986
- Brunson joins LeBron James (2016) as the only players to score 20+ fourth-quarter points in a Finals comeback win from 20-plus down
How the Spurs unravelled
San Antonio’s lead had felt structural rather than fragile. Wembanyama was protecting the rim against every Knicks drive, and the Spurs’ bench mob — Devin Vassell, Stephon Castle and Keldon Johnson — had combined for 31 first-half points off catch-and-shoot opportunities created by Paul’s pick-and-roll reads. Tom Thibodeau switched to a small-ball lineup with Towns at the five and Anunoby guarding Wembanyama with the help of aggressive double-teams from the weak side. The Spurs’ response, or absence of one, became the story.
Popovich, who has now coached in seven Finals across four different decades, was uncharacteristically curt afterwards. “We stopped playing the way that got us here. Simple as that. We tried to protect a lead with a team that has no business protecting leads at this level of inexperience.” Asked directly about Barkley’s remark, he managed a thin smile: “Charles is entitled to his opinion. So are the scoreboard operators in New York on Friday night.”
What it means for Game 5
The 3-1 deficit is, historically, almost insurmountable. Only one team — the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers — has come back from 3-1 down in the Finals, and they had LeBron James and Kyrie Irving in their primes against a 73-win Warriors side that lost Draymond Green to suspension. San Antonio have Wembanyama, but they also have a 39-year-old Paul nursing a sore hamstring, a Fox return that remains “day-to-day” according to the team, and a road game on Friday at Madison Square Garden, where New York are 8-0 in this postseason.
The deeper concern for San Antonio is psychological. They were the No. 1 seed all season, won 64 games and entered the Finals as 2-1 favourites against a Knicks team that needed seven games to dispatch both Indiana and Boston. To lose having led by 24 — and to do so in a manner that drew Barkley’s verdict from a man who has used softer words for officiating scandals — is not the kind of defeat a young team forgets quickly. Wembanyama, asked whether the series is over, shook his head. “No. But we have to be a lot smarter than we were tonight. A lot smarter.” Even he, it seemed, was not inclined to argue with Barkley’s framing.
Sports journalist and editor at SportsPortal.net. Covers cricket, football, Formula 1, tennis, and basketball with a focus on how global sports connect with Pakistani audiences. Follows the PSL, Pakistan national cricket team, Premier League, and major international tournaments. Has reported on sports for digital audiences since 2021.
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