EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsSAN ANTONIO -- Victor Wembanyama accepted responsibility for his role in San Antonio's first Game 1 loss in the NBA Finals in franchise history but said he isn't "worried in the slightest" about how the Spurs will fare as the series unfolds.Minutes after the visiting New York Knicks defeated San Antonio 105-95 on Wednesday to take a 1-0 lead in the NBA Finals, Wembanyama, who committed postseason career highs in turnovers (6) and missed shots (15), agreed with coach Mitch Johnson's assessment that he needed to establish more of a presence inside to achieve overall team success. The Knicks outscored San Antonio 50-42 in the paint and outperformed the Spurs 23-14 in second-chance scoring."I agree with the coach," Wembanyama said. "It's the same: Every team guards differently. I'm going to figure it out. I was bad tonight. It's not more complicated than that."Wembanyama finished with a team-high 26 points with 12 rebounds and three blocks, becoming the fourth player since blocks became official (1974) to achieve that line in their Finals debut. The 22-year-old joined the company of Shaquille O'Neal (1995), Hakeem Olajuwon (1986) and Elvin Hayes (1975).Yet that effort went for naught as San Antonio lost an NBA Finals opener for the first time in seven appearances throughout the team's history."Felt like he missed a few shots early," Johnson said of Wembanyama. "We've got to get him moving in space and toward the rim, whether that's on rolls or running in transition. But we need the pressure on the rim and the force in the paint. They did a good job obviously of being physical and showing crowds. We need to do a better job of establishing that early on, for sure."Wembanyama managed just five points on five attempts in the first quarter, but the Spurs seized a 10-point lead with 1:28 left on the strength of a 10-point opening frame from Dylan Harper, who shot 3-of-3 to become the first rookie to score in double figures in the first quarter of a Finals game in the past 25 years. Harper finished with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor with only one turnover.His driving floater with 6:31 left in the third quarter gave San Antonio a 14-point lead, only for New York vaporize it with a 25-11 run that sent the teams into the final frame deadlocked at 76-all."We're excited for Game 2 because we know we can play so much better, and this just isn't the game we're used to playing," forward Devin Vassell said.The statistics indicated as much, as San Antonio finished with 16 assists, the fewest since March 11, 2022."Us ending the game with only 16 assists is not something that we want," guard De'Aaron Fox said. "We want to continue to have them in rotation. Obviously, we have to make shots as well."The Spurs led by a point with 2:16 remaining, after Wembanyama connected on the second of two free throws to make the score 95-91. But the Knicks closed the game on an 11-0 run to become the third team in the past 50 years to win a Finals outing by 10 points or more after trailing in the final two minutes and the first of those squads to win by 10 or more in regulation."It was quick," Wembanyama said of New York's late run. "I think we let that one go."Jalen Brunson scored 13 of his game-high 30 points in the fourth quarter, racking up the production on an inefficient 31 shots. The Spurs shot 1-of-14, including 0-for-8 on 3-pointers, with one turnover when Brunson was the primary defender in Game 1. He contested nine of those 14 attempts.Knicks forward Josh Hart, listed at 6-foot-5, collected a game-high 15 rebounds."Felt like some of that was bad offense on our part," Johnson said. "Some of that was maybe at times not being able to square the basketball up and give proper resistance. The offensive rebounds crushed us, 23 second-chance points. We're up at one point, get them to miss."Miles Bridges then snagged the offensive rebound."Brunson hits a 3 and they go on an 11-0 run. Tough," Johnson said.Wembanyama agreed."We let them get an offensive rebound, so that's on us," he said. "After that, that's an experienced team. They know how to play with momentum. We had the momentum until late in that game. That's why I said we let that one go. It's almost not like I have anything to figure out. It's almost like I have to play normal, not even good [in Game 2]. It's just [about] doing the right things enough. When we play bad, when I play bad, is when we shoot ourselves in the foot. This is why I'm not worried. We're going to be so much better. I'm going to be so much better."
