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Inside The Spurs

Spurs Beat Thunder in Game 7 With Total Team Effort, Advance to NBA Finals

Victor Wembanyama led seven Spurs in double-figure scoring, and San Antonio is heading to New York to face the Knicks in their first Finals appearance since 2014.
May 30, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) shoots against Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holmgren (7) in the first quarter during game seven of the western conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
May 30, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) shoots against Oklahoma City Thunder center Chet Holmgren (7) in the first quarter during game seven of the western conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The San Antonio Spurs are returning to the NBA Finals for the first time in 12 years after dethroning the defending champions in Oklahoma City with a thrilling, classic Game 7.

The Spurs won 111-103 as Victor Wembanyama scored 22 to lead seven Spurs in double-figure scoring. This team couldn't have punched their ticket to New York in a way that was more reflective of how they got to this point. San Antonio played cohesive basketball, with each other and for each other.

Wembanyama earned Western Conference Finals MVP honors. The Spurs shot a blistering 43% from deep, and turned things around on the glass in the second half after giving up too much there in the first 24 minutes.

The Spurs opened the game on a feverish run, taking care of the ball and taking advantage of transition opportunities in transition and beyond the arc. They built an early 14-point lead, a strong punch to stumble the defending champs and stun their feral home crowd.

Stephon Castle kept attacking the rim, De'Aaron Fox picked his spots, and Wembanyama imposed his will all over the floor including right at the rim with a ferocious dunk over Chet Holmgren.

At a crucial point in the second quarter, Wembanyama picked up his second foul fighting for a defensive rebound and Luke Kornet came off the Spurs' bench ready to check in. Wemby waved off the substitution, forced a miss inside, and swished a deep 3 in transition to push San Antonio's lead back up to nine.

Castle went up for a transition dunk and got thrown to the floor from behind by Alex Caruso. Dylan Harper practically jumped on Castle to prevent him from going after Caruso. It was ruled a common foul and nothing more.

Oklahoma City's shooters came out cold, but Shai-Gilgeous-Alexander put together his best half of the series as he scored 19 points on 8-11 shooting before halftime. That's more field goals than he scored in five of the first six games of the series. He mainly took advantage of instances when Stephon Castle switched off of him.

The Thunder managed to erase that early deficit and take their first lead of the game and all of the momentum just before halftime, but Fox and Wembanyama both hit big shots to take both the lead and the momentum back.

OKC made a lineup adjustment at halftime, benching Isaiah Hartenstein for Alex Caruso to bring more shooting onto the floor. three minutes in, he hit one from the top.

On a huge sequence to start the second half Wembanyama got left open on the block and dunked the ball like it was a Nerf hoop, then stuffed Shai on a drive.

SGA got his revenge though, getting a switch off of Castle and drilling a stepback 3. With Castle on him, he pump faked him into the air and drew free throws. The Spurs were down three before two minutes and 17 seconds of perfect basketball by Julian Champagnie.

Julian Champagnie nailed a corner 3, then got three free throws from the same spot, then swished from the top of the arc, then grabbed an offensive board that turned into two Spurs points, then swished another 3 from the top. He keyed a 13-2 run at a crucial moment to put the Spurs up eight, then Wembanyama drilled a triple to make it 11.

The Thunder climbed back into it with a 9-1 run despite not making a single basket, it was all free throws. Fox ended that with a driving bucket inside.

Oklahoma City won their second challenge, but that left them with none remaining for the final 14 minutes of the game. The Spurs led 80-77 heading to the fourth.

A Fox/Wemby pick and roll sprung Keldon Johnson for 3, but the Thunder answered. Harper crashed off a miss and got the ball back to Keldon in the corner for another.

Wembanyama drew a few shooting fouls that the Thunder didn't like, but they couldn't challenge.

Fox drilled a triple to put the Spurs up 9, the Thunder answered, and then Wemby answered right back as they traded haymakers in the final round of the twelfth matchup between these teams.

Keldon cut in transition for a tough lay to give the Spurs an 11-point advantage, and OKC called time with eight minutes left, the Loud City crowd reduced to stunned silence.

The Thunder responded, attacking Wembanyama to put a fifth foul on the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year. Shai hit another middie to cut San Antonio's lead to just six, and the visitors called time to regroup.

Wembanyama went to the bench to catch his breath and avoid fouling out, and Luke Kornet started quite possibly the most important stint of his life with a massive block in transition.

Castle cashed a jumper, the Thunder fumbled a pass down low, and Wemby checked back into the game after a 59-second rest. Champagnie made a 3, then missed the next one, but Harper was there to put it back up and in. Then the rookie pulled up and swished a 3.

The Thunder refused to die, swishing a 3 to cut it to six. Champagnie missed a jumper, but the board fell to Castle who put it back up and in.

Devin Vassell crammed a transition dunk for the exclamation point that silenced Loud City for good.

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Tom Petrini
TOM PETRINI

Tom Petrini has covered Spurs basketball for the last decade, first for Project Spurs and then for KENS 5 in San Antonio. After leaving the newsroom he co-founded the Silver and Black Coffee Hour, a weekly podcast where he catches up on Spurs news with friends Aaron Blackerby and Zach Montana. Tom lives in Austin with his partner Jess and their dogs Dottie and Guppy. His other interests include motorsports and making a nice marinara sauce.

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