The San Antonio Spurs were one shot away from evening the NBA Finals before a heartbreaking finish left them facing a daunting challenge.
Following Friday night’s 105-104 loss to the New York Knicks in Game 2, De’Aaron Fox delivered a clear message about the Spurs’ mindset as the series shifts to Madison Square Garden. With San Antonio trailing 2-0, Fox acknowledged the history facing his team while insisting the focus remains on the next opportunity.
“I mean we just got to try to make history not repeat itself,” Fox said.
The Spurs rallied from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit and briefly took the lead when Victor Wembanyama completed a three-point play with 57 seconds remaining. However, New York closed the game with the final three points, capped by Jalen Brunson’s go-ahead free throw after a late turnover.
Fox finished with 20 points and five assists on 8-for-12 shooting, but afterward pointed to areas San Antonio must improve if it hopes to climb back into the series.
“For us, it’s we got to try to find a way to have to get easy baskets,” Fox said. “11 fast break points. I’m not sure what our transition points were, but we got to figure out a way to try to play fast, you know, off of misses, off of makes, get the ball out quick, and just figure out ways to get those type of baskets.”
One of the biggest challenges through two games has been New York’s ability to pull Victor Wembanyama away from the rim. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in Game 2 while helping create spacing for the Knicks’ offense.
“Having somebody like KAT is a difficult cover,” Fox said. “That’s what everybody tries to do is to pull Vic away from the basket.”
Fox praised Wembanyama’s impact on the defensive end even when he is not blocking shots.
“Obviously him being in the paint, you know, greatest guy, greatest player to ever, you know, be just when he’s standing there like you feel the gravity,” Fox said. “You feel teams kind of see him there and decide to do something else.”
The Spurs star guard also defended the final possession. After Fox inbounded the ball, he found Wembanyama for a catch-and-shoot jumper from the elbow that would have won the game.
“I mean it’s a great shot,” Fox said. “You got to catch a shoot shot right off the elbow. He makes that shot nine times out of 10. So I think we had a great possession.”
Fox was also asked about a late turnover when a pass from Wembanyama failed to connect with Stephon Castle. While acknowledging the mistake, he refused to place the loss on a single play.
“As soon as he passed it I saw Steph wasn’t ready and or wasn’t looking for the ball,” Fox said. “Those things happen.”
He added: “There were a lot of things that led up to that point that we could have avoided. And even after that, we still gave ourselves a chance to win.”
Despite the disappointment, Fox emphasized that the Spurs cannot dwell on the result.
“You got to look at the game ahead of us,” Fox said. “Obviously, we can’t get this back. We would have loved to win obviously both of these games, but now we got to go on the road and try to win a game.”
With the Knicks carrying a 13-game playoff winning streak into Game 3, San Antonio now needs a response in New York. Fox believes the path forward is simple: play faster, rebound better, and keep believing the series can still change.
