While San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama scored a team-high 26 points in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, those points didn’t come easily or efficiently.
The New York Knicks forced the phenom to shoot 6-of-21 from the field and 2-of-9 from beyond the arc. He did get to the free-throw line quite a bit, where he went 12-of-13, but former NBA journeyman Eddie Johnson thinks the Knicks forced Wembanyama to rely too much on his outside shot. Johnson believes that is “exactly” what New York wanted.
The Achilles heel for Wemby is Physicality. His antidote for it is to revert to playing like Steph. Nine 3 attempts is exactly what the @nyknicks wanted and he cannot give into it but getting to bonus and KAT in foul trouble should be his mission throughout game!
— Eddie A Johnson (@Jumpshot8) June 4, 2026
Wembanyama averaged 5.5 3-point attempts per game during the regular season and has averaged 5.0 per game during the playoffs. For him to take nine 3-pointers in Game 1 may indeed indicate that the Knicks forced him to get away from his game.
The 22-year-old’s 7-foot-4 frame makes him an incredibly high-percentage scorer when he’s close to the rim, but if he settles for long shots and 3-pointers, his size becomes somewhat neutralized on the offensive end. He is a capable 3-point shooter — he has made 35.6 percent of his 3-pointers in the postseason — but the Spurs would certainly rather have him finish near the basket.
The Knicks did enough to earn a huge win in Game 1 on the road by a final score of 105-95. The way they handled Wembanyama certainly went a long way toward their victory, and they now have home-court advantage regardless of what happens in Game 2.
But the Spurs are going to have a chance to respond, and Wembanyama — who has played well above his years in his first taste of postseason action this year — is going to be a tough player to keep down over the course of a best-of-seven series.
Game 2 will take place on Friday in San Antonio before the series shifts to New York. If the Knicks win Game 2, they’ll take a 2-0 series lead back to Madison Square Garden and be in prime position to win the war. The Spurs are trying to make sure that doesn’t happen.
