Mitch Johnson reveals what crushed Spurs in NBA Finals opener

For much of Wednesday night, the San Antonio Spurs looked in control of Game 1. They built a double digit lead and forced New York to spend most of the evening playing from behind. 

Every time the Knicks appeared ready to make a push, San Antonio found another answer. By the middle of the third quarter, the Spurs had stretched their advantage to 14 points.

That should have been enough to create real separation. Instead, New York remained close enough to keep believing. The reason appeared almost every time the Knicks missed a shot.

San Antonio would force a difficult possession. New York would miss. Then the possession continued when the Knicks grabbed another rebound.

One extra chance became two. Two became three. Before long, the Knicks were collecting points from possessions that should have ended much earlier.

The effect slowly changed the game.

San Antonio kept scoring enough to hold the lead. What it could not do was pull away. Every offensive rebound erased part of the work the Spurs had just completed on defense.

That became increasingly important as the game moved into the fourth quarter.

The Knicks never needed a huge comeback because they never drifted far enough behind. New York remained within striking distance despite spending much of the night trailing.

That reality became obvious during the final two minutes. The Knicks did not erase a massive deficit late in the game. They simply took advantage of a score that remained within reach because San Antonio never finished possessions consistently enough throughout the night.

Then came the sequence everyone will remember.

Victor Wembanyama made a free throw with 2:16 remaining to give San Antonio a 95-94 lead. The Spurs were still in position to win. Moments later, New York grabbed another offensive rebound. Jalen Brunson followed with a 3-pointer and everything changed drastically.

The Knicks closed the game on an 11-0 run. Afterward, Spurs coach Mitch Johnson pointed toward the problem that had been building all night.

"Felt like some of that was bad offense on our part," Johnson said. "The offensive rebounds crushed us, 23 second-chance points. We're up at one point, get them to miss."

The final run decided the score. And the rebounds made the final run possible.

By the time New York took control in the closing minutes, the groundwork had already been laid over the previous three quarters.

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