On June 5, 2014, LeBron James walked to the Miami Heat bench with four minutes left in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The air conditioning inside San Antonio’s AT&T Center had failed, temperatures soared past 90 degrees, and the four-time MVP could barely move. Moments later, severe cramps forced James out of the game, the Spurs closed on a 16-1 run, and a championship series instantly changed direction. Finals basketball has always been a war of talent. Sometimes, though, it’s a war of energy. Championships are often decided long before the final buzzer, in the moments when a coach decides whether to trust a tired superstar or steal a few minutes of rest for the closing stretch.

That’s why Magic Johnson believes the San Antonio Spurs made a critical mistake in Game 4. Speaking on ESPN’s Get Up, the Lakers legend argued that Mitch Johnson left Victor Wembanyama on the floor too long despite holding a massive lead, ignoring the same player-management principles Pat Riley once used during the Showtime Lakers era.

Magic Johnson made that point on ESPN’s Get Up with Mike Greenberg. “Coach [Mitch] Johnson made a huge mistake when you’re up 20. Big man Victor, come sit down. At the end of the third quarter, he should have took him out and said, ‘You get this time out,’ like Pat Riley used to tell me,” Magic said. “‘You’re going to get this time out, and you’ll get another three or four minutes. Then I’ll put you back in to end up going to the fourth quarter and the game.'”

Magic Johnson added, “He should have took Victor out because he had a big lead. Now, you can rest him and bring him back in. And because he plays so many minutes, he couldn’t take over the game.”

For Magic, the mistake wasn’t playing Wembanyama heavy minutes altogether. It was failing to use the 29-point cushion to buy his superstar a brief stretch of rest before the fourth quarter.

The criticism goes beyond a single coaching decision. Wembanyama has carried an enormous burden throughout the Finals, averaging 27.8 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.3 blocks while playing more than 40 minutes per game. In Game 4, that number climbed to nearly 44 minutes. By the end of the night, the Spurs star was 9-for-25 from the field, missed 10 of his final 11 shots and watched a 29-point lead disappear.

The fatigue argument became harder to ignore during the Spurs’ historic Game 4 collapse. Wembanyama offered an even harsher assessment of the second half. “Execution, greediness, of some sort. We clearly weren’t the most hungry in the second half,” he admitted after the loss.

San Antonio led 81-52 midway through the third quarter and still held a 15-point advantage entering the fourth. Yet the Knicks ripped off a 28-9 run, while Wembanyama missed 10 of his final 11 field-goal attempts and later acknowledged the physical toll afterward.

Asked whether fatigue played a role, Wembanyama didn’t completely push back on the idea. “Definitely a factor but it’s the playoffs. Everybody’s just as tired. I mean, it shouldn’t even be a factor in the game. I mean, now we got 2 days between games. It’s not going to be a factor.”

That response captured the balancing act facing the Spurs. Wembanyama acknowledged the physical toll of Game 4 while refusing to use it as an excuse for the collapse.

Mitch Johnson defended the decision afterward. “With two days after this, what was at stake, we wanted to win the game and try to put it away,” the Spurs coach said.

The decision ultimately backfired. San Antonio blew a 29-point lead, the largest collapse in NBA Finals history, while Wembanyama later acknowledged fatigue had played at least some role in the loss.

Meanwhile, the New York Knicks’ head coach Mike Brown has utilized Jalen Brunson to the fullest by giving him enough resting time throughout games. “Mike Brown has been excellent for this team. He has not worn out Brunson, and Brunson could finish the game. And it was just beautiful basketball,” Magic Johnson pointed out. JB has averaged 38.7 minutes per game with 29.5 points, 5.0 assists, and 4.5 rebounds.

The contrast is exactly what caught Magic’s attention. Under Mike Brown, Brunson’s workload has been reduced compared to previous playoff runs, allowing him to remain explosive late in games. The payoff has been enormous. Brunson is averaging 10.3 fourth-quarter points per Finals game, the highest mark recorded in an NBA Finals since tracking began in the 1996-97 season.

If the Spurs figure out the trouble, can Victor Wembanyama & Co. become NBA Champs?

After Wednesday’s collapse, Magic Johnson isn’t ready to bury San Antonio’s season. While most of the basketball world views the Knicks as one win away from a championship, the Lakers legend believes the Spurs should leave Game 4 frustrated rather than discouraged.

Wembanyama appears to share that belief. Asked about facing a 3-1 deficit, the Spurs star said: “Everybody knows we’re gonna do it. I think it’d be a mistake to waste our energy on multiple games. It’s one game at a time.”

“I think this is going to be Game 6 back to New York,” Magic said. “The Knicks have executed better than the Spurs. So if I’m the Spurs, I’m feeling good. ‘Hey, yeah, I lost, but I’m going home. We correct some mistakes that we made, and we can win and make it a 3-2 series and come back to New York.'”

Magic’s point isn’t necessarily that San Antonio is about to complete the greatest comeback in Finals history. It’s that the series may not be as finished as it looks. The 2016 Cavaliers proved a 3-1 deficit can be overcome, but only after winning Game 5 and forcing the pressure back onto Golden State. That’s the same challenge now facing Wembanyama and the Spurs.

History offers little comfort for San Antonio. Teams trailing 3-1 in the NBA Finals are 1-37 all-time, with the 2016 Cavaliers remaining the only championship team to complete the comeback. Even LeBron James refused to look beyond the next game during that run, repeatedly reminding teammates: “We’ve got to go to Golden State and win one game. That’s it.” For the Spurs, the task is similarly simple. Win Game 5 first. Worry about history later.

Whether the Spurs can become the second team ever to erase a 3-1 Finals deficit remains to be seen. But Magic Johnson’s message was much smaller than that. He wasn’t talking about miracle comebacks or championship celebrations. He was talking about one decision.

If San Antonio wants another shot at this series, Mitch Johnson may have to do exactly what Pat Riley once taught Magic Johnson. Not every coaching move is about drawing up a play. Sometimes it’s knowing when to sit a superstar down for three minutes so he still has enough left to decide the final three.