Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle and the rest of the San Antonio Spurs find themselves in the unenviable position of being down 0-2 in the NBA Finals, after losing Game 2 105-104. Out of the 474 playoff series that had a team go up 2-0, only 35 of them have overturned the deficit and came back to win. Out of the 35 times it has happened, only 5 have taken place in the NBA Finals; 2021 Milwaukee Bucks, 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, 2006 Miami Heat, 1977 Portland Trailblazers and 1969 Boston Celtics. Now, the thing binding most of these teams together is they all lost the opening two games on the road and then won the next t wo at home. The only exception is the 2016 Cavaliers, who went down 3-1 to the Golden State Warriors and then rattled off 3 straight NBA Finals wins to complete the most improbable comeback in NBA history. Complicating things further for the Spurs is the fact they had the opening two games at home and managed to lose both. This has only happened two other times in NBA history; 1993 Phoenix Suns and 1995 Orlando Magic. Both teams went on to lose their respective series. Making history is what San Antonio will need to accomplish in order to get back in the series, let alone think about winning it. Pretty much every player on the Spurs is underperforming.

There isn’t anywhere else to start, but with Victor Wembanyama. His scoring numbers have been fine, although he does seem to be working very hard for his buckets and can’t seem to generate an easy shot attempt or drive into the lane with the same ease as last series. The best example might be the last shot of the game.

San Antonio was down 105-104 with 7.5 seconds left and had possession in the frontcourt. De’Aaron Fox received the inbounds pass and worked a quick pick-and-pop with Wemby, who took the final shot. Mitchell Robinson, to his credit, hedged against Fox during the pick-and-roll action, then hustled back to get in front of the Frenchmen and make sure he wasn’t able to get into the lane. Wemby recognized this and fired up an elbow jumper that clanked off the back iron and bounced harmlessly away as the buzzer sounded. He hasn’t be able to generate any space for himself via the dribble and and mostly has had to settle for tough, contested jumpers with a hand in his face. Mitchell Robinson and, especially, Karl-Anthony Towns have done an incredible job of making him uncomfortable on offense, keeping him off the offensive glass and limiting his ability to patrol the paint.

The Knicks bigs, in addition to their wing defenders, have also done a phenomenal job at keeping Stephon Castle quiet. Against Oklahoma City, he was attacking the paint at will, drawing fouls and getting to the free throw line with regularity. Castle took a total of 46 free throws, making 39 of them in the WCF. So far, through 2 games in the Finals, he’s taken 6 total free throws. That’s a precipitous drop off. If both Vic and Castle are limited in their effectiveness on offense that is asking a lot from the rest of the team to pick up the scoring slack.

De’Aaron Fox scored at a much better rate in Game 2, finishing with 20-points, after a murky performance in Game 1. The rookie Dylan Harper had another strong game off the bench, scoring 15-points. A couple of time he turned down an open 3 to drive straight to the rim. A good decision given he needs to improve his 3-point % to reach his full potential. His handle is also a little sloppy and needs to be tighten up in the offseason. Devin Vassell shot a little better, but his positive play was washed out by Julian Champagnie’s quiet night. When the Spurs are at their best, those two guys are hitting 3 with consistency.

One of the many disappointment’s for San Antonio has to be the severely lackluster play from reigning 6th-man of the year Keldon Johnson. He averaged 13.2 PPG in the regular season and hasn’t come anywhere close to hitting that level of production in the postseason. There has been zero room for him to operate, whether he tries to drive, post up or take a 3. Through two games he’s played 24 total minutes and only has 6 points. In addition to a lack of scoring, Johnson has been beaten off the dribble, in the post, on the glass and in the hustle/energy department. Not much else to say other than he’s been abysmal.

While the Spurs have been mostly negative, it’s the exact opposite for the New York Knicks. They are playing some of the most unselfish, unified, inspired basketball the NBA has ever seen. Coming into the NBA Finals they had won 11-straight playoff games, and have only added to it since. Most impressively, they are only one game away from tying the record for the most road playoff wins, held by the 1994/95 Houston Rockets with 9 wins.

Jalen Brunson is the heartbeat of the team, as he goes the rest follow. He hasn’t shot it particularly effectively in the Finals, but he leads the team in scoring, hitting timely and important buckets (the go-ahead 3 in Game 1 and the go-ahead free throw in Game 2). Rarely is he not up to the challenge late in the game. He also hasn’t been targeted much by Mitch Johnson in cross-matchups, and when he does the Knicks provide good help defense. Brunson will go down as one of the best ever free agent signings if the Knicks can bring home the NBA championship.

Karl-Anthony Towns has been the revelation of the NBA Finals and is playing at an MVP type of level. Coming in it was assumed Victor Wembanyama had the clear advantage in the individual matchup, but after two games KAT has been the decisively better player. Something that maybe only Knicks fans could have seen coming. His ability to hit 3’s has thrown Wemby for a loop. Anytime KAT is facing up on the perimeter, Vic is in his grill, which causes KAT to pump fake and dribble right past him and get to the rim for a dunk or layup. It’s happened on a number of occasions already. When Wemby tries to alter his approach and give KAT a little space, he just steps into a 3 and nail it. Very few NBA big-men have the offensive skill to outwit Wemby, KAT just happens to be one of those players and is playing with an other-worldly confidence at the moment. Surprisingly, Towns has also out-fought and out-muscled Wemby on the boards too. Another area in which many thought Vic had the advantage. KAT isn’t know as the most solid defender or possess the highest defensive IQ, but in this series those two weaknesses have been largely minimized. He’s been strong at the point of attack, not letting Wemby get position in the paint. This forces the Frenchmen to rely on dribbling by KAT or shooting over him, neither being particularly effective. And, when KAT needs a breather, Mitchell Robinson comes in, who is known for his tenacious, stifling defense. Having two waves of strong, physical defenders to throw at Wemby has really given Mike Brown and New York a clear advantage.

OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges are filling their roles admirably. Both are resolute in their ability to defend, not letting anyone past their long arms and lanky frames. The Spurs are having trouble driving and kicking with these two getting their hands into the passing lanes, causing deflections and turnovers. Both also have active hands and like to swipe at the ball. San Antonio has had major issues trying to get into any sort of rhythm on offense as these two are disputing the ball-handlers incessantly. OG has been a solid 3rd scoring option, while Bridges can get hot like he did in Game 2, going for 20-points.

All teams need a guy who can come in and hit a 3 off the bench. It seems like New York has that guy in Landry Shamet, while the Spurs don’t have a prolific shooter to call upon. In both games now, Shamet has come off the bench to score 13-points and hit some critical 3’s. He’s played 30+ minutes in both games too, so it looks like he’s the first option off the bench for Mike Brown at the moment.

Jose Alvarado and Miles McBride have contributed mostly through their defensive effort and have done just enough on offense to give Jalen Brunson a breather every now and again.

Josh Hart, and his anti-Arsenal agenda, has been the only player to wildly swing from good performance to OK performance. He hasn’t given the Knicks much offense, but provides enough rebounding, play-making, defensive effort and energy to help fuel the team. A ton of his contributions go under the radar, as he isn’t filling up the box sheet with eye-catching numbers.

With the series now heading back to Madison Square Garden and San Antonio in an 0-2 hole, it’s must-win time for Victor Wembanyama and the rest of the Spurs. No NBA team has ever gone down 0-3 in a playoff series and come back to win. The New York crowd is going to be champing at the bit and losing their minds throughout the game. The atmosphere in and around the stadium is sure to be electric. It’s going to be pandemonium at the Garden on Monday for Game 3, especially with Donald Trump in attendance.