The San Antonio Spurs are facing an uphill climb through two games in the 2026 NBA Finals, but Stephon Castle is showing up for his team in Game 3 against the New York Knicks on Monday night.
Playing the Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York, Castle had a solid start to the contest, as the former UConn Huskies star guard amassed 18 points on 7-for-9 shooting in 18 minutes of action in just the first half.
With that scoring production early, the 21-year-old Castle became the first player 22 years old or younger to have that many points in a half of an NBA Finals game since 2014.
Article Continues Below
“STEPHON CASTLE CANNOT BE STOPPED IN GAME 3 💪 Castle's 18-PT first half is the most by a player 22 or younger in the first half of the Finals since Kawhi Leonard in 2014. It's also his most in any game this series so far!” ESPN Insigts shared via a social media post on X, formerly Twitter.
Castle was feeling it in the first 24 minutes of action, as he added three assists, two rebounds and a steal for San Antonio, which can't afford to lose Game 3. To be down 3-0 against the Knicks would amount to a virtual NBA Finals loss for the Spurs, considering that no team has ever come back to win a series after losing the first three games.
Castle, selected by the Spurs fourth overall in the 2024 NBA Draft, entered Game 3 with totals of 31 points on 12-for-30 shooting in the first two games of the 2026 edition of the Finals.
The San Antonio Spurs are facing an uphill climb through two games in the 2026 NBA Finals, but Stephon Castle is showing up for his team in Game 3 against the New York Knicks on Monday night. Playing the Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York, Castle had a solid start to the contest, as the former UConn Huskies star guard amassed 18 points on 7-for-9 shooting in 18 minutes of action in just the first half.