13 June 2026, 11:10am
Spurs vs Knicks Game 5 Preview: Home Court Could Keep San Antonio Alive
San Antonio get one more home-floor swing at the NBA Finals tonight, and this feels like the spot where the Spurs can extend the series.
The New York Knicks lead the Finals 3-1 after a tense 107-106 Game 4 win at Madison Square Garden, but Game 5 shifts back to the Frost Bank Center with tip-off scheduled for 8:30pm ET on Saturday 13 June — 1:30am Sunday morning for UK viewers. It is officially a must-win for San Antonio: lose, and the Knicks are champions; win, and the series heads back to New York for Game 6.
That is a big ask against a Knicks team that has repeatedly found enough late-game offence through Jalen Brunson, but there is a fair case for Spurs optimism. Victor Wembanyama has been the defining matchup problem of the series, and the NBA’s Finals hub lists him as San Antonio’s series leader at 27.8 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. If the Spurs can get cleaner half-court spacing around him and avoid another narrow fourth-quarter slip, home court gives them a genuine chance to pull one back.
The speculative lean here: Spurs to take Game 5. Not because New York have suddenly lost control — they have earned that 3-1 lead — but because elimination games often tighten up, role players usually shoot with more confidence at home, and San Antonio’s defensive length can still drag the Knicks into uncomfortable possessions if the pace slows.
What has to change for the Spurs?
- Protect the margins: Game 4 was a one-point loss. San Antonio do not need to reinvent the series, but they do need to win the possession battle.
- Use Wembanyama early: The Spurs’ best route is forcing New York to show help, then punishing the first rotation.
- Make Brunson work: Brunson’s scoring has kept New York steady. San Antonio need bodies on him without giving up easy kick-out threes.
- Feed off the building: With the Finals back in San Antonio, the Frost Bank Center should be a real factor if the Spurs start quickly.
How to watch Spurs vs Knicks Game 5
For UK viewers, Amazon says the 2026 NBA Finals are streaming on Prime Video in select countries outside the US, including the UK. Its guide lists Game 5 — Knicks at Spurs — for Saturday 13 June at 8:30pm ET and says fans can watch via the Prime Video app by signing in to a Prime account and finding “NBA” in the app.
So, if you are already an Amazon Prime member in the UK, this is the one to check first: open Prime Video, search for NBA, or look under Sports / Live & Upcoming. Amazon’s guide does not present it as a separate free-to-air broadcast, but for Prime members it should be available through Prime Video where the live game tile appears. Regional availability can change, so check the app before tip-off.
You can also follow the official schedule and game hub through the NBA Finals page and the ESPN game centre.
New York still have three chances to close the job. But if San Antonio are going to make this Finals feel alive again, tonight at home is the moment.
Image credit: Daiei Onoguchi, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped/formatted for All Basketball UK.
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