The San Antonio Spurs walked into the NBA Finals believing they were the better team and that the title was all but won. On the other side of the court were the New York Knicks, who had other ideas. Ultimately, the young guns of the Spurs learned a lesson in humility they're already ignoring.
Honestly, it's hard to blame the Spurs for being confident. The Western Conference Finals saw them take on and take down the reigning champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder. San Antonio's stifling defense rendered Shai Gilgeous-Alexander all but useless on the court. It was a thing of beauty.
Confidence isn't a bad thing in an athlete, regardless of the sport. You need to believe in yourself to be able to set foot on the court, the field, or the pitch and take on some of the best in the world at what you do. The problems start when that confidence morphs into arrogance.
The Spurs weren't being honest with themselves
San Antonio's top three players are Dylan Harper, Stephon Castle, and Victor Wembanyama, all of whom are under the age of 23. They are the presumptive leaders of this roster, not to mention the core the Spurs will be building around for the next few seasons. There are titles in their future.
But their age and inexperience caused them to make a critical mistake: underestimating their opponents. This trio, especially Wemby, did not take the Knicks seriously. Wemby believed there was no doubt he could and would outplay New York's star, the supposedly undersized Jalen Brunson.
Instead, Brunson and the Knicks ran Wemby and the Spurs absolutely ragged. By the end of the second and fourth quarters, Wemby was so gassed he could barely play. On the other hand, Brunson was playing like he had another 12 minutes in him when the final buzzer sounded.
San Antonio needs to take the lesson and get better
If the Spurs want to truly bounce back from this and compete for a title, they have to learn the difference between confidence and arrogance. What they brought to the court against OKC was well-earned confidence. What they showed up in NYC with was unbridled arrogance. It cost them a title.
Even now, there are signs that the Spurs are not learning from their mistakes. Wemby has stated that the San Antonio were the better team, even after losing the series four to one. That's not only wrong, it's a prime example of an arrogant statement. The Spurs aren't the ones having the parade, after all.
Arrogance is often associated with youth, particularly in athletes. The Spurs trio will hopefully grow up and figure that out. Oddly enough, the right player to help with that process would have been Chris Paul. Maybe the Spurs can hire him on as an assistant coach in charge of player maturity.
