Spurs’ Mitch Johnson breaks down failed final play vs. Knicks in Game 2

There has been a lot of talk regarding the backbreaking turnover that Victor Wembanyama was guilty of towards the end of the San Antonio Spurs’ 105-104 loss to the New York Knicks in Game 2 of the 2026 NBA Finals. Wembanyama certainly should not have thrown the ball off of Stephon Castle’s back; being more composed would have allowed him to recognize that De’Aaron Fox was behind him and they could have attacked the Knicks in semi-transition.

However, even with that turnover, the Spurs still had an opportunity to get away with it by winning it at the buzzer. They had the final possession, and they ran the two-man game between Fox and Wembanyama. This got Wembanyama a bit of a clean look from midrange, but he ended up clanking it off the back iron, giving the Knicks a 105-104 victory.

Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson broke down his play call towards the end of the game and he seemed pleased with the look that they got to try and win.

“Just put Fox and Victor in the pick and roll, Fox made a good pass to him and he caught it with some space, took a good shot,” Johnson said in his postgame presser, via Wemby Alien Era on X (formerly Twitter).

Mitch Johnson on the final play:

"Just put Fox and Victor in the pick and roll, Fox made a good pass to him and he caught it with some space, took a good shot."#GoSpursGo #PorVida pic.twitter.com/eAEiLdITY0

— Wemby Alien Era (@WembyAlienEra) June 6, 2026

There seemed to be a lack of urgency from Fox’s part to start the play, but this might have been by design to make sure that the Spurs got the final look. Nonetheless, it might have been the smarter play to go early, so if Wembanyama’s shot missed, they had a chance to get a putback to rescue the game.

But at the end of the day, the Spurs just can’t let games go down to the wire against this battle-tested Knicks team. The effort they played with towards the end of the fourth quarter has to be the standard for them moving forward as they are now playing for their lives in the NBA Finals down 2-0 to the Knicks.

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