Cavaliers Knicks Basketball

New York Knicks guard Landry Shamet (44) celebrates with teammates after scoring a three-point basket during the first overtime of Game 1 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in New York.

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On Basketball: Game 1s in the NBA's conference finals were beyond belief

On Basketball: Game 1s in the NBA's conference finals were beyond belief

If the NBA had screenwriters, not even they could come up with a start this good to the conference finals. Victor Wembanyama has 41 points and 24 rebounds. San Antonio goes into Oklahoma City and beats the defending champion Thunder. New York trails by 22 points with about eight minutes left in regulation, then beats Cleveland. Both games go to overtime, in a conference finals first. And the score at the end of regulation in both games was 101-101. The best player on the winning team took over in crunch time: Wembanyama for the Spurs and Jalen Brunson for the Knicks.