Few franchises understand how quickly a Finals game can slip away better than the Spurs. More than a decade after watching a championship vanish in the closing seconds of Game 6 against Miami, San Antonio suffered another painful collapse on Wednesday night, blowing a 29-point lead in a 107-106 Game 4 loss to the Knicks.

Brunson missed a field goal attempt. The ball went all the way into the backcourt to Fox, who chased down a loose ball in the frontcourt with his team ahead 106-105. The nine-year veteran could have dribbled out the clock and waited for the Knicks to foul him with just 14 seconds left. Instead, he went for a layup, which OG Anunoby extraordinarily swatted. It allowed the Knicks to gain the final possession and call for a timeout, which ended in Anunoby’s game-winning tip-in.

The ending was only part of the story. San Antonio had led 81-52 midway through the third quarter and still held a 20-point advantage with less than 10 minutes remaining. But the Spurs scored just 30 points in the entire second half while New York poured in 58, completing the largest comeback in NBA Finals history.

The Spurs had three defenders near the basket, but Anunoby crashed through untouched. The Knicks forward finished with 33 points on 10-of-15 shooting and knocked down seven of his nine attempts from beyond the arc. As Madison Square Garden celebrated the largest comeback in NBA Finals history, much of the immediate scrutiny shifted toward Fox’s final decision.

“What the hell was De’Aaron Fox doing? De’Aaron Fox just made the dumbest play I think in a Finals game ever,” said Emmanuel Acho. Even Charles Barkley on Inside the NBA had a similar reaction.

“That was a dumb— play (on Fox attempting this layup). He did not have to shoot that ball.” Before missing that crucial shot, the 28-year-old missed another when the Spurs were trailing by one with 32 seconds remaining. De’Aaron Fox also conceded a crucial turnover with 2 minutes left. That mistake did not cost them, as Castle was quick to contest the layup and Hart failed to capitalize on his steal. Fox’s late layup attempt became the defining moment, but it was hardly the only reason San Antonio surrendered control of the game.

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Shannon Sharpe also tweeted, “WTF was Fox thinking? Just run the clock out or make them foul you. He’s played some DUMB 🏀 LAST 20mins.”

Fox’s shooting had already become a talking point during the Finals. Outside of Game 2 against New York, the veteran guard struggled to find consistency, shooting 23% and 28% from the field in Games 1 and 3 while going 0-for-9 from beyond the arc. Those struggles led some fans to call for rookie Dylan Harper to handle more of the late-game workload.

The criticism also arrived against the backdrop of an uneven Finals from Fox. Outside of a strong Game 2 performance, the veteran guard had struggled to consistently generate efficient offense, leading some fans to call for rookie Dylan Harper to handle more late-game possessions. The Spurs lost 107-106 and now return to San Antonio facing a 3-1 deficit.

Law Murray of The Athletic pointed to Wembanyama’s struggles as another major factor in the collapse, noting that the Spurs star missed 10 of his final 12 shots and three of his last four free throws. After dominating stretches of the first half, Wembanyama managed just eight points while shooting 3-for-14 after halftime, his least efficient shooting performance of the Finals. His struggles coincided with a Flagrant 1 foul early in the third quarter and a series of defensive adjustments that pulled him further away from the basket.

Ultimately, Fox’s blocked layup will dominate the highlights and Wembanyama’s rough second half will invite criticism. Yet the larger story was San Antonio’s collective unraveling. The Spurs scored just 30 points after halftime, watched a 29-point lead disappear, and now return home facing a 3-1 deficit after one of the most dramatic collapses in NBA Finals history.