Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals is scheduled for Saturday, and the New York Knicks need one more victory to become NBA Finals winners after pulling off the largest comeback in Finals history in Game 4.
The result left New York up 3-1 and staring at the end of a 53-year title drought; the Spurs, meanwhile, must attempt a comeback from a deficit only one team in league history has erased. That team was LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers a decade ago — the only side to win the title after trailing 3-1 in the Finals.
Numbers and moments frame the stakes. The Knicks are plus-40 with Karl-Anthony Towns on the floor across the series, and Towns’ impact against Victor Wembanyama has been described as unmatched. Still, the Finals MVP conversation has tilted toward New York’s wing and backcourt: OG Anunoby, described as the Knicks’ most solid two-way performer and credited with what some called the defining final-second sequence of Game 4, and Jalen Brunson, labeled the engine of the Knicks’ offense.
That debate is compact and immediate. Nick Friedell put the race plainly: "I would go with OG Anunoby." Friedell added the simple condition that could seal it: "If he has another big game in Game 5, I think the award is his." He also noted the alternative: "If Jalen Brunson has a big night, he will be the MVP." Other observers landed on a similar short list — Tony Jones: "I think it should be Anunoby, with Brunson heavily in the conversation." Jay King saw it as unsettled: "It’s up in the air right now, but I would choose Anunoby." And Eric Koreen offered the narrow margin separating roles: "At the risk of relitigating the Steph Curry-Andre Iguodala debate of 2015, I think it’s Anunoby by a hair over Brunson."
The friction point in play is Karl-Anthony Towns. He was a major early factor for New York but vanished in Game 3 and ran into first-half foul trouble in Game 4 — developments that weakened his Finals MVP case even as his series-long plus-40 and matchup work remain hard to ignore. That split — demonstrable impact over the series versus a midseries disappearance — is the single thread that could flip the trophy conversation in either direction on Saturday.
For the Spurs, the path is straightforward and narrow. They must protect home-court opportunities, press New York’s ball handlers, and force someone other than Brunson and Anunoby to carry the scoring load. The Spurs had sold out to stop Brunson at critical moments earlier in the series; whether that plan will be sustainable for one more win against a Knicks roster now buoyed by a record comeback is the central tactical question of Game 5.
Practical detail for viewers: the winner of Game 5 could decide both the championship and the Finals MVP. If New York finishes the job, the defining plays from Game 4 — Anunoby’s game-saving block on De’Aaron Fox and his final-second sequence — will be elevated from clutch moments to parts of a championship narrative that voters rarely resist. Conversely, a Spurs win would extend the series and reopen the conversation about Towns’ overall contributions versus his recent slip.
What to watch when the ball tips: Brunson’s usage and shot-making in the first half, Anunoby’s defensive assignments and whether he can sustain the efficiency that earned him comparative praise as having the best true-shooting percentage in an extended playoff run ever, and Towns’ minutes and foul situation. Each player’s opening-quarter tone will tell the story: dominance, control or struggle.
The most consequential question now is sharp and immediate — not whether the Knicks have played better this series, but who will claim the individual crown if they close it out Saturday: the steady two-way finisher who turned Game 4 into an unforgettable sequence, the offensive engine who has been New York’s heartbeat, or the big man whose midseries stumble may have cost him the case? Game 5 will answer whether the Knicks become NBA Finals winners and, at the same time, which name will be etched most prominently on the Finals MVP debate.
