Why the Knicks-Spurs Series Might Be the Most Unbelievable Clash in 25 Years of NBA Playoffs

Using live win probability metrics, we’re analyzing the closest NBA playoff series of the last 25 years. The most-recent series – Knicks-Spurs in the 2026 Finals – stands the tallest of all.

Since the New York Knicks captured their first NBA championship since 1973, many people have been calling the Finals against the San Antonio Spurs one of the most competitive series of all time.

But how can we really measure that?

Sure, the Knicks only outscored the Spurs by 12 total points in the five-game series, and the combined margin of victory by the winning teams was only 20 points. (The six-point difference of Games 2 through 4 marked the fewest to decide a three-game span of any NBA Finals.)

And yeah, the Spurs led by double digits in the first quarter in every game before the Knicks came back, even setting an NBA Finals record by overcoming a 29-point deficit to win Game 4.

And, of course, the Spurs also led for 72% of the Finals despite losing the series in five games.