The stench of Donald Trump wasn’t in the building for this Game 4. Instead, it was Taylor Swift frolicking on the floor with her friends, and Jerry Seinfeld giving concerned basketball looks out at the court every now and then as if he were coaching the Knicks.
BTW…if the NBA banned Donald Sterling from ownership of the LA Clippers, then how is it even remotely possible Donald Trump was allowed to soil these NBA Finals for a game with the world watching in Game 3?
Moving on from that though. I’m not a prophet, preacher, or a politician. I’ve come to disdain both parties equally. So please don’t take any of the above as a political statement of any manner…because it’s not.
Scoff if you must at my claims of destiny and fatedom, but what else could it have been in this historically amazing Game 4 stunner as the NY Knicks came back from 29 points down to win this game and take a 3-1 series lead heading back to the Alamo.
This marks the single largest comeback in NBA Finals history. Think about that one, Coach Jerry Seinfeld.
This game was stunning to take in for its entirety of 48 minutes of play. The beginning was beyond surreal as Karl Anthony-Townes had a nightmarish beginning with two fouls in less than two minutes.
The Spurs couldn’t miss from beyond the arch and there was absolutely no reason to think or believe this series was going to be headed back to the Alamo tied at 2-2. None.
But these Knicks with their leaders Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby are a resilent bunch. They don’t quit. They just keep plugging along kind of like the tortoise and the hare, and this basically was the tortoise and the hare if you really think about it.
OG is the strong, silent type and finally with the AT&T commercial on his acting resume is beginning to get his due for the excellent basketball player he is on the NBA stage. Nothing flashy. Just rock solid dead solid dependable. Not a superstar. Just one of those guys a coach loves to have in his locker room.
What a game!
The Spurs and their coach once again put their youth on full display in the second half as they kept chucking threes that didn’t fall in the second half. For me…I gave Mitch Johnson a D- for his inabilty to adjust his team’s offense in the final 24 minutes.
If the threes aren’t falling it should be a simple mantra with a guy like Wemby on your team…get to the rim, and get to the free throwline. Instead…they kept jacking threes and didn’t adjust to the changing flow of the second half.
OG had 33 points and the game-winner in 41:28 minutes of play. Jalen Brunson was on the floor for 44:57 in this game and finished with 36 points. OG had the game-winner…so on my sheet he’s the No. 1 Star and Jalen is the No. 2 Star of the Game.
After KAT’s disastrous beginning in this game…. he did eventually get somewhat going and in 25:25 on the floor went 4-5 from the field, grabbed 10 rebounds, and miraculously finished with a +17 rating. KAT is my No. 3 Star in this game. Again…the AT&T commerical. Those three dudes are my three primary stars of the game.
My No. 4 Star was a cameo performer in the AT&T ad. That being one…Jose Alvarado. I loved his toughness and hubris. It was needed on this night as Landy Shamet went o’fer in Game 4 as Jose was oustanding in 15:38 of play.
That’s my recap other than to say I thought De’Aaron Fox was brutal in the final minutes of play. If you’ve noticed…in the the three Spurs losses…De’Aaron has not been a positive influence on the game for the young Spurs. His role is supposed to be that of the calming veteran point guard. So far…in three of the four games the opposite in fact has been the case.
De’Aaron will once again be in my highlighted red marker for a key to watch for in Game 5.
I have to admit at this point…it would be cool if the Knicks went on to win this series. Good luck to both teams.
A New York team and a New York movie, right? Sometimes we need to observe a little destiny around us.
Mike J