Miles McBride Becomes Just the Third Mountaineer Player to Win an NBA Title

West Virginia is on some sort of run right now. From the baseball team's road to Omaha to the football and basketball teams' recruiting elite talent to "Take Me Home, Country Roads" captivating an entire country, and now, a former Mountaineer, Miles McBride, winning an NBA championship.

The New York Knicks closed out the NBA Finals on Saturday night, taking down the San Antonio Spurs in five. With the win, McBride becomes just the third former West Virginia player to ever win an NBA title, joining the legendary Jerry West, who won it with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1972, and Jerome Anderson, who did it with the Boston Celtics in 1976.

It was a pretty quiet series for Duece in the Finals, combining for just 11 points across the five games, but he made his impact felt all throughout the regular season and in the first three rounds of the playoffs. His best performance came in the closeout game of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers, where he racked up 25 points on a blistering 7/9 shooting from three-point range.

His toughness, defensive intensity, and ability to knock down threes at a high clip are all what have helped make him a fan favorite in the Big Apple. Obviously, Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and Karl-Anthony Towns are the biggest names on the roster, but McBride is the one non-star player who has won over all of New York. Every time the ball touches his hands, everyone in the building stands to their feet and shouts in unison, "Deuuuuuuuuce". Pretty cool for that to happen for a Mountaineer.

It wasn't an easy road for McBride this season as he dealt with some injury issues, which had him on the shelf for a bit, limiting him to just 41 games in the regular season. He fought his way back onto the court and back into his Sixth Man role, playing well down the stretch, including a 21-point performance in the season finale against the Charlotte Hornets. For the season, McBride averaged 12 points (career high), 2.6 assists, and 2.4 rebounds per game while connecting on 42% of his shots from the floor and 41% from beyond the arc.

It will be an interesting offseason for McBride as he will enter the summer as an unrestricted free agent. You would have to think that, with the impact that he has had off the bench, the Knicks will do everything they can to keep him in the fold.

The best of McBride's production throughout the championship run

Jun 5, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) celebrates during the fourth quarter during game two of the 2026 NBA Finals at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Round 1 vs. Atlanta Hawks

Game 3: 15 points, 5/14 FG (5/10 3FG), 2 steals, 1 rebound, 1 assist in 31 minutes
Game 4: 11 points, 4/7 FG (3/6 3FG), 1 assist in 23 minutes

Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. Philadelphia 76ers

Game 1: 8 points, 3/6 FG (2/5 3FG), two assists in 16 minutes
Game 4: 25 points 7/10 FG (7/9 3FG), 4 assists, 1 steal in 29 minutes

Eastern Conference Finals vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

Game 4: 11 points, 4/6 FG (3/5 3FG), 3 steals, 2 assists, 2 rebounds in 17 minutes

NBA Finals vs. San Antonio Spurs

Game 1: 6 points, 2/7 FG (2/6 3FG), 4 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal in 19 minutes

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