Attack on the titan

The Knicks pressured Victor Wembanyama and made him uncomfortable, and he couldn't make them pay. Meanwhile, Jalen Brunson took his time and figured out how to do what he does.

Good morning. Prettiest rock fight I've ever seen. Let's basketball.

The first thing to know about this era of Knicks basketball – the Jalen Brunson era, that is – is that if you want to bury them before the buzzer sounds, you'd better really bury them. A 14-point lead, which the Spurs all-too-briefly built in the third quarter, is not really a lead at all against the Knicks. I can't find a source now, but when stats were zipping around like mayflies in the wake of Game 1, I saw a post that indicated the Knicks are .500 in playoff games in which at some point they fall behind by double-digits. I don't know if that's true. People can write anything on the internet. But it feels true, watching the Knicks right now, that they could be .500 in games where at some point they trail by double-digits.

They are 1-0 in these Finals in games where at some point they trail by double-digits, having won Game 1 105-95. Brunson, surprise surprise, led all scorers with 30 after a painfully slow start. He got cooking in the second half, and especially in the final seven minutes and change. The shotmaking remains absurdly high-level, with him setting the right pace to get San Antonio's excellent defenders out of rhythm, and to move away from the titan guarding the rim.

He got banged up twice early on, but continued to play with his particular style. The Spurs did a poor job trying to hunt him on defense, and he held up when he was pulled into action. He didn't get basically any calls all night – just four free throws with 31 field goal attempts – and yet. And yet and yet and yet. He's putting together a master class every time the Knicks need it.

More master classes for the Knicks in a total grind-it-out, unpretty-but-beautiful game? Karl-Anthony Towns, who reacted quickly to the Spurs' interesting defensive game plan, which involved lots of on-ball pressure early from Wembanyama himself to take away Towns' playmaking. Towns attacked the aggressive defense and tried to beat Victor to the basket. It worked sometimes, and he moved the ball other times. Wembanyama eventually moved over to Josh Hart and Towns did some necessary offensive work in the first half when it was most needed. But Towns' greatest contributions were in defending Victor, who shot just 6/21 from the floor. Towns did his best Isaiah Hartenstein impersonation and tried to keep Wembanyama from driving to the lane or getting the ball at the elbow. It worked. Victor ended up taking a bunch of off-balance floaters and jumpers, and really only scored much at the line (13 free throw attempts). The Spurs' No. 1 job is how to either get more offense out of non-Wembanyama players or get Towns out of the way. What a turn of events in Karl-Anthony Towns' career!