Stephon Castle Reveals Added Motivation Before NBA Finals Game 2

The San Antonio Spurs suffered a Game 1 loss to the New York Knicks in the opening contest of the 2026 NBA Finals.

Fresh off their Game 7 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, the Spurs fell to a well-rested Knicks team with a 105-95 final score at San Antonio’s Frost Bank Center.

The Spurs have been in this position before, losing Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round of the playoffs before going on to win the series 4-2.

Spurs second-year guard Stephon Castle said this series-opening loss against the Knicks gives San Antonio some added motivation heading into Game 2.

“Having our backs on the wall, being down 1-0 is going to give us a little more motivation,” Castle said postgame. “But it should be there regardless.”

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Castle finished Game 1 will 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists - shooting 7/16 from the field. Victor Wembanyama recorded 26 points and 12 rebounds, but was inefficient in his NBA Finals debut - shooting 6/21 from the field and 2/9 from behind the 3-point arc.

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The Spurs now look to bounce back and tie the series at 1-1 before it heads to New York. Then at Madison Square Garden, San Antonio will need to steal at least one game in order to reclaim home-court advantage.

Game 2 will tipoff at 8:30 p.m. ET on Friday.

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This story was originally published June 4, 2026 at 10:30 AM.