2026 NBA Finals | Spurs vs. Knicks: Game 3
Written by: Varun Sharma
Published: Mon Jun 08, 2026, 3:43 pm ET
Read Time: 7 minutes
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The New York Knicks are set to host their first NBA Finals game since 1997, tonight at Madison Square Garden. The get-in price is astronomical, the stakes are even higher and the Knicks have a chance to up three games to none against the San Antonio Spurs.
The city is buzzing, let's not waste any time and jump right into tonight's game.
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Game Information
Matchup Information
- Location: Madison Square Garden; New York, New York
- Date: Monday, June 8th, 2026
- Tipoff: 8:40 PM EST
Postseason Performers
- Jalen Brunson (NYK): 36.1 MPG | 26.9 PPG | 2.8 RPG | 6.6 APG
- Victor Wembanyama (SAS): 32.5 MPG | 23.2 PPG | 10.8 RPG | 2.7 APG
Betting Odds
Odds via Lucky Rebel, an industry leader in the sports betting world.
Analysis & Breakdown
New York, New York
The City of New York is buzzing right now. For the first time since 1973, the New York Knicks will host an NBA Finals game with the lead in the series. It's been a long wait for Knicks fans all over the world, but that just makes it even sweeter now that they're back.
The Knicks have looked good in the first two games of this series and maybe twice as good on the defensive side. New York's held San Antonio to just 199 total points through two games and despite shooting significantly worse in Game 2, still came away with the win.
Jalen Brunson's been great for the Knicks in this postseason, but through two games he's shooting the ball terribly. After 30 points in Game 1, Brunson was held to just 20 in Game 2 and he shot under 30% from the field. Brunson's shooting 34% from the field in this series just 24% from three.
Brunson's struggles from the perimeter have carried over from the conference finals and he's now shooting just 33% from outside. As bad as Brunson was in Game 2, Kar-Anthony Towns was just as good.
Towns has shown no fear against Wembanyama through two games of this series and that's been a consistent theme since Wemby entered the league. In eight total career matchups, Towns is averaging 19.3 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. He's shooting 56% from the field and he's scored 19+ points in six of the eight games.
Towns has been great and so far he's been the MVP in this series.
Gotta be Historic
If the Spurs are going to come back in this series, they'll have to do something historic. There has never been a team that loses the first two games of the NBA Finals, at HOME, and goes on to lift the Larry O'Brien Trophy. Good news is, this has only happened twice before.
Five teams in NBA history have dropped the first two games of the NBA Finals and gone on to win it all. However, all five played the first two games on the road. Only two teams before this year lost their first two game at home, the 1993 Phoenix Suns and the 1995 Orlando Magic.
The Suns would lose to the Michael Jordan Bulls, while the Magic got swept by the Hakeem Olajuwon Rockets.
History is not on their side, but knowing Wembanyama and this Spurs squad; there's no quit in this team. Wemby's averaging 27.5 points per game in this series but he's shooting just 41% from the field. He had an abysmal Game 1, shooting under 30% from the field and from the perimeter.
In Game 2 he scored 29 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, shot 56% from the field; but cost the Spurs the game with a costly turnover in the final seconds. After securing a rebound on a late missed shot, game tied at 104; Wemby passes the ball into the back of Stephon Castle.
Miscommunication between the two kids and the Spurs' two best players cost them Game 2 and now they've got to dig themselves out of a hole.
Monday's Best Bets
Julian Champagnie o15.5 P/R (-120) | Lucky Rebel
Julian Champagnie saw a sharp decrease in his usage in Game 2, but he still played 36 minutes. Champagnie went 2/6 from the field, scored 8 points and grabbed just 4 rebounds. The Spurs grabbed just 5 offensive rebounds in Game 2, just half of their postseason average of 11.7 per game.
In Game 1, the Spurs grabbed 14 offensive rebounds. Champagnie finished Game 1 with 10 rebounds, 3 on the offensive glass. The Spurs unfortunately scored just 14 second chance points on the 14 offensive rebounds, but that's because of poor shooting.
In Game 2 the team shot better from the field, finishing the game shooting 47% and 37% from beyond the arc. Tonight after the extra day off, I'm expecting the Spurs to come out firing.
That's why I'm rolling with Champagnie once again. He leads the entire postseason in threes made, he's shooting 40% from out there and he's from Staten Island.
Playing an NBA Finals game here at Madison Square Garden just means a little more to the guy that grew up here.
Champagnie hasn't had a 'MSG Moment' yet in his career; tonight feels like the perfect night to do it.
Karl-Anthony Towns 21.5 P/A (-110) | Lucky Rebel
You read that right, we're targeting the points and ASSISTS for Karl-Anthony Towns.
While we're on the subject of New Yorkers, let's talk about Big Purr. Towns grew up in New Jersey, most of his family is in New York and with half of his family being Puerto Rican (on his mom's side); tonight's game means just that much more.
Now aside from the narrative, let's talk about how good Kat's been through the first two games. Towns' is averaging 19.5 points per game in this series and he's had 4 assists in back to back games. Towns has also been great on the glass, but he's also had 4+ assists in four of eight career games against Wemby.
Tonight, on their home floor, I'm expecting the Knicks to just shoot better. In Game 2 the Knicks shot just 42% from the field and I'm expecting that to change tonight in front of the home crowd.
Lastly, Towns is shooting 56% from the field against Wemby in his career and that's carried on through the first two games of this series. He' s playing MVP-esque basketball and I'm ready to roll with the big man tonight.
Karl-Anthony Towns says he "felt a calm and a peace" from his late mother tonight. pic.twitter.com/9DVwNGqMwI
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) June 4, 2026
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