The 2025-26 NBA Finals begin tonight at Frost Bank Center as the New York Knicks visit the San Antonio Spurs in a best-of-7 series to decide the next NBA champion. Game 1 tips-off at 7:30pm local time, and will be broadcast on ABC.
The Spurs are coming off a 7-game battle against last year’s champions while the Knicks easily took care of the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals. San Antonio is led by 7’4” center Victor Wembanyama; New York will be counting on Jalen Brunson for another stellar series.
Some NBA fans insist that the “real” finals were already played during the WCF, but don’t let the Knicks fool you… they’re in dire need of making a statement and wresting homecourt advantage away from the Spurs in one of the first two games. This is why we’re picking the Spurs to win Game 1, and taking the Knicks point spread.
According to Kalshi prediction market forecasters, the Spurs are nearly 2-to-1 favorites to win tonight. If you agree with that prediction, you can buy contracts on an outright San Antonio win for 64¢. If you’re correct, each contract you purchase will settle at an exact price of one dollar. New York Knicks believers can go with the visiting team at 37 cents per contract.
Given that we believe this will be an extremely close game, we’re choosing the Knicks with +4.5 points at a contract price of 50¢. New York simply has too much riding on the need to steal at least one of the first two games from the Spurs before heading to Madison Square Garden for Game 3 on Monday, June 8th.
As expected, much of the storyline leading up to the NBA Finals is focused on the two superstar players who will be competing against each other for a potential series MVP award. Victor Wembanyama and Jalen Brunson have been exceptional in the postseason, and there’s no reason to believe either will falter with an NBA championship on the line.
Ironically, neither player was named the MVP for the 2025-26 NBA season. That award went to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder with the Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic placing second in the voting. Both OKC and Denver have already been eliminated in the playoffs.
Separately, Spurs shooting guard De’Aaron Fox will be playing against his former coach – Mike Brown. The duo were part of the same team during Fox’s early career with the Sacramento Kings. Once the Kings fired head coach Mike Brown in December 2024, De’Aaron Fox was traded to San Antonio, and the rest is history.
Kalshi traders are banking on Victor Wembanyama being named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player. The decision to buy the Frenchman on Kalshi at 60¢ per contract depends on who you think will win Game 1 tonight. If the Spurs win, Wembanyama’s price will skyrocket in anticipation of the Spurs ultimately winning the series. However, if the Knicks pull off the upset in Game 1, you’ll be able to purchase Wembanyama at a much cheaper MVP price in the aftermath.
The same goes for Jalen Brunson. If you think the Knicks win Game 1, then pick Brunson for MVP at 32 cents – because his price will jump following a Knicks victory. If you think the Spurs are destined for a Game 1 victory, Brunson’s price will drop and you’ll be able to get him for series MVP at a much cheaper price later in the week.
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