During Game 4 of the 2026 NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs led by as many as 29 points only to fall to the New York Knicks 107-106, completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history. While it was a roller coaster of emotions for Knicks fans capped by pure elation, Spurs' fans felt an opposite range of emotions as they figured Game 4 was all but won before the final buzzer. Anything can happen in the NBA and Game 4 was another brilliant example of that.
Spurs' Victor Wembanyama was integral in their success once again, totaling 24 points, 13 rebounds, and three blocks in yet another dominant performance. Throughout the first half, the Spurs looked unstoppable with their lockdown defense and accurate shooting from deep, scoring 76 points for the most in a half by any road team in Finals history.
The Spurs also set a record with 14 made three-pointers in a half, most by any team in NBA Finals history. However, all of those marks will be overshadowed by their collapse in the second half, allowing the Knicks right back into the game after scoring just 14 points in the third quarter and 16 points in the fourth quarter.
Even more evident was the stern difference in San Antonio's energy levels, particularly with Victor Wembanyama towards the end of the game. Game 4 ultimately revealed that although Wembanyama is shattering all early expectations, there's still one obstacle he need to conquer before he can become truly unstoppable.
Wembanyama managing fatigue and workload.
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) reacts during the fourth quarter of game four of the 2026 NBA Finals
Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Victor Wembanyama has it all: an unwavering motor on defense, length and athleticism capable of altering another team's offense, extremely sure hands in rebounding and grabbing loose balls, and he's even added a spot-up three-point shot to his arsenal. One of his greatest strengths, however, is his ability to lead this team with a veteran mindset while becoming the ultimate motivator on the court and instilling confidence in his teammates.
However, it's clear that Wembanyama attempts to carry the entire weight of the team on his own shoulders as they look towards him in each quarter to jump start their offense. When Wembanyama is on the floor, the Spurs enjoy a +3.4 net rating as opposed to a terrible -20.1 net rating when he's off the floor. Wemby is already averaging 40.3 minutes per game during these NBA Finals, the highest mark over multiple games of his career.
The issue isn't that Wembanyama can't adapt – we've clearly seen him do so against OKC in the conference finals and the Knicks during this series – but he's simply not accustomed to this intense of a workload for an entire seven-game series. Against the Thunder, Wembanyama averaged 37.7 MPG. He averaged 29.2 MPG against the Timberwolves and 28.3 MPG against the Trail Blazers during these playoffs.
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Furthermore, Wembanyama hasn't seen a full month of basketball averaging these kinds of numbers with his highest mark of the regular season set during November 2025 when he averaged 35.3 MPG whilst competing for the NBA Cup. He averaged 29.2 MPG during the entire 2025-26 regular season, just under his 33.5 MPG average through 46 total games last season.
"Can't really explain it right now. Execution, greediness of some sort. We clearly weren't the most hungry in the second half"
Victor Wembanyama speaks on what went wrong in the Spurs 2nd half collapse 😳
(via @espn) pic.twitter.com/FyM2pRe6Kj
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 11, 2026
While Wembanyama may point towards greed or lack of execution in the Spurs' Game 4 collapse, the fact of the matter is that he's looking extremely fatigued by the end of these games. He's not just tired, he's completely gassed by the final buzzer and barely left the floor with 44 minutes logged during Game 4.
The Knicks are most dangerous when they're swinging the ball around and pushing the pace on offense. Given Wembanyama's involvement in switching and shifting on defense, he's basically involved in every action on the floor to some extent along with battling gritty fouls down low from the Knicks' entire roster.
For Wembanyama to become truly unstoppable, he'll have to adapt his cardio to an elite level where he can basically remain on the floor at all times. Otherwise, the Spurs should look into adding another capable big man to alleviate some of the pressure off Wemby to improve their net rating when he's off the floor. His greatness only comes along so often, it's best the Spurs do everything they can in preserving their future's longevity.
During Game 4 of the 2026 NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs led by as many as 29 points only to fall to the New York Knicks 107-106, completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history. While it was a roller coaster of emotions for Knicks fans capped by pure elation, Spurs' fans felt an opposite range of emotions as they figured Game 4 was all but won before the final buzzer.