The Knicks Are Already Capitalizing on Wemby's Biggest Weakness

The Knicks are making Victor Wembanyama pay for his mental mistakes. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Though the Knicks entered the NBA Finals hearing all about Victor Wembanyama's greatness, they looked more than up to the challenge in Game 1. The generational talent was limited to 6-of-21 shooting by New York's hounding defense, and his Spurs-high 26 points were mostly carried by a friendly whistle that led to 12 made free throws.

That's not even to mention the fact that Wembanyama racked up six turnovers to begin this series. This is particularly notable, as it seems the Knicks are doing all that they can to test his biggest weakness—decision-making—and create opportunities for themselves, which is a major factor in winning this matchup.

Knicks making Victor Wembanyama's turnover issues even worse in Finals, and benefiting from that

As an incredibly young star, Wembanyama has a ways to go before patching any holes in his game. One he's still figuring out as he draws more attention and has heightened expectations is avoiding mental mistakes.

This shows up in his penchant for turning the ball over. Just two seasons ago, he averaged a whopping 3.7 turnovers per game. Yes, that was as a rookie, and his numbers have gone down since.

But this issue has been on display in these playoffs, too. Against the Blazers in the first round, Wemby had a pair of four-TO games. In the second round, he had two more such instances, plus another three TOs in the Game 1 loss to the T-Wolves. And in the conference finals, he tallied 19 across seven games.

Then in Game 1 against New York, he recorded a postseason-high six turnovers. That was his highest mark in any game since his seven turnovers on March 1 against, you guessed it, these same Knicks.

New York scored 19 points off turnovers on Wednesday, which is an advantage that was directly fueled by Wemby's six TOs. This proved huge in helping the team stay in the game when they were struggling by creating easier buckets, while also keeping the Spurs from regaining the lead when the Knicks got hot late.

Just look at what happened in the closing minute. San Antonio had the chance to close the 99-95 gap with plenty of time still remaining, yet Wembanyama lost the ball for no good reason, and Jalen Brunson scored on a jumper right after to make the lead six with 37 seconds left.

Bro this still got me in tears pic.twitter.com/qkIzA8lUMw

— ✧.* (@HoodiiBron) June 4, 2026

This made the ensuing Spurs possession make-or-break, and a three-point miss by Wemby was the final nail in the coffin. His turnover changed the entire context of the closing minute, all simply because of an unforced and untimely error he could've prevented.

This aspect of Wemby's game is particularly well-suited for New York to feast on. They have engaged everywhere on the court, and their length allows them to turn any mishandled pass into a steal or loose ball that changes possession. They can also use their reach to cover up or close down passing lanes, as well as provide a distraction for the towering San Antonio center.

Less-wise decision-making also shows up in Wemby's shot selection on specific possessions, and sometimes entire nights. Sometimes he's looking to make the impossible happen, like his wild layup attempt near the four-minute mark that hit the top of the left side backboard. That was also immediately followed up by a three-point attempt deep in the corner, which also hit the top backboard, with Landry Shamet clearly closing out on him.

I haven’t seen anyone hit the side of the backboard and top of the backboard in the same possession since 2016 Ian Mahinmi https://t.co/NDnSUQzwbe pic.twitter.com/K0r3nbI2kb

— Nick Bateman (@nickbateman33) June 4, 2026

Wembanyama's 6-of-21 showing in Game 1 was eerily similar to the 4-of-15 he had against the Thunder in Game 6 and the 5-of-17 he was versus the Wolves in Game 1 of that series. Both of those other contests were losses as well. This tendency to miss after miss just hurts the Spurs' offense and lets New York get back into things or maintain leads.

The best teams key in on where their opponents are weakest and seize opportunities when they arise. The Knicks clearly did this in Game 1, which is a very promising sign that Wemby's struggles will continue to aid them the rest of the NBA Finals.